Wright, Harold Bell, 1872-1944

Wright was born on May 4, 1872 in Rome, NY; educated in the student preparatory dept. of Hiram College; worked as a painter and decorator (1887-92) and as a landscape painter (1892-97); became a pastor in the Christian (Disciples) Church, Pierce City, MO, (1897-98), and at churches in Pittsburg, KS (1898-1903), Kansas City, MO (1903-5), Lebanon, MO (1905-7), and Redlands, CA (1907-8); retired from the ministry in 1908; became a novelist whose published works include That printer of Udell's (1903), The shepherd of the hills (1907), The calling of Dan Matthews (1909), The uncrowned king (1910), The winning of Barbara Worth (1911), A son of his father (1925), To my sons (1934), and The man who went away (1942); he died on May 24, 1944.

From the description of Papers, 1900-1944. (University of California, Los Angeles). WorldCat record id: 40352193

Harold Bell Wright was America's leading romance author from 1903 to about 1923. It is estimated that of his nineteen books published between 1903 and 1942, as many as ten million copies were sold. Harold Bell Wright was born in Rome, N.Y. to parents William A. and Alma Watson Wright on May 4, 1872. After his mother died when he was ten years old, and his father abandoned him, he lived several years with various relatives and strangers, working for shelter and scraps of food. Wright attended Hiram College in Hiram, Ohio until the late 1890s when he was forced to leave school to combat a serious illness. He relocated to Missouri where he regained his health and started his preaching career. From 1897 to 1908 he served as a minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). His preaching took him to Pierce City, Missouri; Pittsburg, Kansas; Kansas City, Missouri; Lebanon, Missouri; and lastly to Redlands, California. In 1902 Wright wrote his first book, That Printer of Udell's, which he read to his Pittsburg, Kansas congregation, one chapter per week. What That Printer was published in 1903, sales were good enough that Wright almost immediately started writing Shepherd of the Hills . When that story was published in 1907, its sales broke publishing records and established Wright as America's top-selling author. The following year he left the ministry to pursue his promising writing career. While living in the Imperial Valley, Wright wrote several books including The Winning of Barbara Worth, his highest selling title. In 1920, after many years of illness, Wright moved to Tucson, Arizona where he believed the climate aided in his recovery. In Tucson he wrote several of his novels, such as When a Man's a Man {[1916]. In 1935 he returned to California, this time to San Diego where he resided until his death on May 24, 1944.

From the guide to the Harold Bell Wright papers, 1890-1946, (University of Arizona Libraries, Special Collections)

Harold Bell Wright one of America's leading romance authors, had sold an estimated ten million copies of his works by 1942. He was born in Rome, N.Y. to parents William A. and Alma Watson Wright on May 4, 1872. After his mother died when he was ten years old, and his father abandoned him, he lived with relatives and strangers, working for shelter and scraps of food. Wright attended Hiram College in Ohio until the late 1890s when he was forced to leave school to combat a serious illness. He relocated to Missouri and started his preaching career. From 1897 to 1908 he served as a minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). His preaching took him him across America. In 1902 Wright wrote his first book, That Printer of Udell's, which he read to his Pittsburg, Kansas congregation, one chapter per week. Wright's next book was Shepherd of the Hills (1907). Its sales broke publishing records and established Wright as America's top-selling author. While living in the Imperial Valley, Wright wrote several books including The Winning of Barbara Worth, his top selling title. In 1920, Wright moved to Tucson, Arizona where he wrote several of his novels. In 1935 he returned to San Diego, California where he resided until his death on May 24, 1944.

From the description of Papers of Harold Bell Wright, 1890-1946 (bulk 1900-1940). (University of Arizona). WorldCat record id: 53329063

Biography

Wright was born on May 4, 1872 in Rome, New York; educated in the student preparatory department of Hiram College; worked as a painter and decorator (1887-92) and as a landscape painter (1892-97); became a pastor in the Christian (Disciples) Church, Pierce City, Missouri, (1897-98), and at churches in Pittsburg, Kansas (1898-1903), Kansas City, Missouri (1903-05), Lebanon, Missouri (1905-07), and Redlands, California (1907-08); retired from the ministry in 1908; became a novelist whose published works include That printer of Udell's (1903), The shepherd of the hills (1907), The calling of Dan Matthews (1909), The uncrowned king (1910), The winning of Barbara Worth (1911), A son of his father (1925), To my sons (1934), and The man who went away (1942); he died on May 24, 1944.

From the guide to the Harold Bell Wright Papers, 1900-1944, (University of California, Los Angeles. Library. Department of Special Collections.)