author

Samuel R. (Samuel Roberts) Wells

1820–1875

A prolific 19th-century writer and publisher, he helped turn phrenology and physiognomy into popular reading for a wide American audience. His books range from character reading and marriage advice to practical guides on farming, gardening, and health.

2 Audiobooks

How to Behave: A Pocket Manual of Republican Etiquette, and Guide to Correct Personal Habits Embracing an Exposition of the Principles of Good Manners; Useful Hints on the Care of the Person, Eating, Drinking, Exercise, Habits, Dress, Self-culture, and Behavior at Home; the Etiquette of Salutations, Introductions, Receptions, Visits, Dinners, Evening Parties, Conversation, Letters, Presents, Weddings, Funerals, the Street, the Church, Places of Amusement, Traveling, Etc., with Illustrative Anecdotes, a Chapter on Love and Courtship, and Rules of Order for Debating Societies

How to Behave: A Pocket Manual of Republican Etiquette, and Guide to Correct Personal Habits Embracing an Exposition of the Principles of Good Manners; Useful Hints on the Care of the Person, Eating, Drinking, Exercise, Habits, Dress, Self-culture, and Behavior at Home; the Etiquette of Salutations, Introductions, Receptions, Visits, Dinners, Evening Parties, Conversation, Letters, Presents, Weddings, Funerals, the Street, the Church, Places of Amusement, Traveling, Etc., with Illustrative Anecdotes, a Chapter on Love and Courtship, and Rules of Order for Debating Societies

by Samuel R. (Samuel Roberts) Wells

The Salem Witchcraft, the Planchette Mystery, and Modern Spiritualism With Dr. Doddridge's Dream

The Salem Witchcraft, the Planchette Mystery, and Modern Spiritualism With Dr. Doddridge's Dream

by Samuel R. (Samuel Roberts) Wells, Harriet Beecher Stowe

About the author

Born in 1820 and active in New York publishing, Samuel R. Wells became closely associated with the Fowler & Wells firm, one of the best-known outlets for phrenology in the United States. He joined the business in the 1840s and later married Charlotte Fowler Wells, linking him directly to the family behind the company.

Wells wrote and edited books that tried to explain personality, appearance, health, and social life through the now-discredited ideas of phrenology and physiognomy. Among the works associated with him are How to Read Character, New Physiognomy, and Wedlock; he also edited the Phrenological Journal and published practical manuals on subjects such as agriculture and horticulture.

He died in 1875. Today, his work is read less as science than as a window into 19th-century popular culture, publishing, and the era's fascination with self-improvement and systems for interpreting human character.