The 1845 Rendering:

The Premise of Authorship

"If it was Cooper, do the pieces fall in place?"

 

What follows are nine speculative but carefully researched articles by Norman Barry. Each of the articles, with the exception of the "1845 Backdrop," will begin with the assumption that James Fenimore Cooper is the only viable candidate for authorship of "The Helmsman of Lake Erie." If only some of the pieces fall in place, that assumption must be viewed as mistaken. If most of the pieces fall in place, it will be viewed as likely. But if all the pieces fall in place, we are no longer dealing with an assumption, but a fact. The ninth article deals with the popular rumor that Charles Dickens might have written "The Helmsman of Lake Erie."

I) THE LEGEND OF JOHN MAYNARD, "THE HELMSMAN OF LAKE ERIE," IN THE BACKDROP OF THE YEAR 1845: THE JACKSON - ELLIOTT - COOPER CONNECTION Below are files of historical newspaper articles, which supplement the essay:

E : The Jesse Duncan Elliott File
J : The Death of General Andrew Jackson
M : The Gansevoort Melville Folder

 

II) THE AUTHOR'S SIGNATURE: THE GOOD SHIP JERSEY IN "THE HELMSMAN OF LAKE ERIE," AND THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE GEOGRAPHY OF NEW JERSEY IN THE WORKS OF JAMES FENIMORE COOPER

 

III) "THE HELMSMAN OF LAKE ERIE" IN LIGHT OF THE ROLE PLAYED BY RELIGION IN THE FICTIONAL WRITING OF JAMES FENIMORE COOPER -- OR, THE SECRET WHY THE GOOD MAN, WHEN DYING, DOES NOT GROAN

 

IV) THE SURNAME MAYNARD IN THE CONTEXT OF THE TALES OF TWO LUCYS: MISS MARTHA RUSSELL'S "LUCY MAYNARD" AND LUCY HARDINGE IN JAMES FENIMORE COOPER'S AFLOAT AND ASHORE OR, THE ADVENTURES OF MILES WALLINGFORD

LUCY MAYNARD, by Miss Martha Russell, from the Columbian [Lady's and Gentleman's] Magazine for April, 1844, transcribed by NORMAN BARRY. This is referred to in the essay above.

 

V) JAMES FENIMORE COOPER'S THE HEADSMAN; OR, THE ABBAYE DES VIGNERONS AND THE LEGEND OF ARNOLD VON WINKELRIED: JOHN MAYNARD'S EUROPEAN ROOTS

An historical ballad entitled "Arnold de Winkelried" by Sara Jane Lippincott (1823 - 1904) was published in Sartain's Union Magazine of Literature and Art (Philadelphia), Vol. VI, January - June, 1850, under the pseudonym "Grace Greenwood." For biographical information concerning Grace Greenwood, refer to Wikipedia.

"The Ancient Song of Sempach" and "The Final Word" on the Historicity of Arnold von Winkelried.

Photo taken by Monika Kaiser of a small handmade Swiss national flag with the name "WINKELRIED," the year "1386," and the setting "Sempach" on it.

 

VI) A LANGUAGE COMPARISON OF THE WRITINGS OF JAMES FENIMORE COOPER AND "THE HELMSMAN OF LAKE ERIE"

 

REVISED VII) THE ROAD TO BALTIMORE IN THE LIVES OF JAMES FENIMORE COOPER AND BENJAMIN BROWN FRENCH: AN INVESTIGATION OF THE PLACE OF PUBLICATION OF A LAKE ERIE SKETCH AND BALLAD

 

NEW! VIII) THE POUGHKEEPSIE FACTOR: THE LINK TO JAMES FENIMORE COOPER?

 

IX) WHO WROTE "THE HELMSMAN OF LAKE ERIE?" AN EXAMINATION OF TWO CANDIDATES: CHARLES DICKENS AND JAMES FENIMORE COOPER