Bret Harte (; born Francis Brett Hart; August 25, 1836 – May 5, 1902) was an American
short story
A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...
writer and
poet
A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...
best remembered for short fiction featuring miners, gamblers, and other romantic figures of the
California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush (1848–1855) was a gold rush that began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California fro ...
.
In a career spanning more than four decades, he also wrote poetry, plays, lectures, book reviews, editorials and magazine sketches.
As he moved from California to the eastern U.S. and later to
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
, he incorporated new subjects and characters into his stories, but his Gold Rush tales have been those most often reprinted, adapted and admired.
Biography
Early life
Harte was born in 1836 in New York's capital city of
Albany. He was named after his great-grandfather, Francis Brett. When he was young, his father, Henry, changed the spelling of the family name from Hart to Harte. Henry's father was Bernard Hart, an
Orthodox Jewish
Orthodox Judaism is the collective term for the traditionalist and theologically conservative branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as revealed by God to Moses on M ...
immigrant who flourished as a merchant, becoming one of the founders of the
New York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed c ...
.
Bret's mother, Elizabeth Rebecca Ostrander Hart, was from the English and Dutch culture and raised her child in a Dutch Reformed church. Later, Francis preferred to be known by his middle name, but he spelled it with only one "t", becoming Bret Harte. Harte was of French Huguenot and Dutch ancestry and descended from prominent New York landowner
Francis Rombouts
Francis Rombouts (22 June 1631 – 1691) was the 12th Mayor of New York City, (formerly New Amsterdam), from 1679 to 1680. He was one of three proprietors of the Rombout Patent, and father of pioneering Colonial businesswoman Catheryna Rombout Br ...
.
An avid reader as a boy, Harte published his first work at age 11, a satirical poem titled "Autumn Musings", now lost. Rather than attracting praise, the poem garnered ridicule from his family. As an adult, he recalled to a friend, "Such a shock was their ridicule to me that I wonder that I ever wrote another line of verse."
His formal schooling ended when he was 13, in 1849.
[Scharnhorst, Gary. ''Bret Harte: Opening the American Literary West''. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 2000: 4. ]
Career in California
Harte moved to California in 1853, later working there in a number of capacities, including miner, teacher, messenger, and journalist; he was also secretary of the
San Francisco Mint.
He spent part of his life in the northern California coastal town of Union (now
Arcata
Arcata (; Wiyot: ''Goudi’ni''; Yurok: ''Oket'oh'') is a city adjacent to the Arcata Bay (northern) portion of Humboldt Bay in Humboldt County, California, United States. At the 2020 census, Arcata's population was 18,857. Arcata was first ...
), a settlement on
Humboldt Bay that was established as a provisioning center for mining camps in the interior.
The ''Wells Fargo Messenger'' of July 1916 relates that after an unsuccessful attempt to make a living in the gold camps, Harte signed on as a messenger with
Wells Fargo & Co. Express. He guarded treasure boxes on
stagecoach
A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are draw ...
es for a few months, then gave it up to become the
schoolmaster
The word schoolmaster, or simply master, refers to a male school teacher. This usage survives in British independent schools, both secondary and preparatory, and a few Indian boarding schools (such as The Doon School) that were modelled afte ...
at a school near the town of
Sonora
Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Sonora), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is d ...
, in the
Sierra foothills. He created his character Yuba Bill from his memory of an old stagecoach driver.
Among Harte's first literary efforts was a poem published in ''
The Golden Era
''The Golden Era'' was a 19th-century San Francisco newspaper. The publication featured the writing of f.e.g. Mark Twain, Bret Harte, Charles Warren Stoddard (writing at first as "Pip Pepperpod"), Fitz Hugh Ludlow, Adah Isaacs Menken, Ada Clar ...
'' in 1857 and, in October of that same year, his first prose piece on "A Trip Up the Coast". He was hired as editor of ''The Golden Era'' in the spring of 1860, which he attempted to make into a more literary publication.
[Tarnoff, Ben. ''The Bohemians: Mark Twain and the San Francisco Writers Who Reinvented American Literature''. New York: The Penguin Press, 2014: 26–27. ] Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...
later recalled that, as an editor, Harte struck "a new and fresh and spirited note" which "rose above that orchestra's mumbling confusion and was recognizable as music". Among his writings were parodies and satires of other writers, includin
The Stolen Cigar-Casefeaturing ace detective "Hemlock Jones", which
Ellery Queen
Ellery Queen is a pseudonym created in 1929 by American crime fiction writers Frederic Dannay and Manfred Bennington Lee and the name of their main fictional character, a mystery writer in New York City who helps his police inspector father solve ...
praised as "probably the best parody of
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes () is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a " consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and ...
ever written". These parodies were reissued in book form in 1867.
The
1860 massacre of between 80 and 200
Wiyot Indians at the village of Tuluwat (near
Eureka
Eureka (often abbreviated as E!, or Σ!) is an intergovernmental organisation for research and development funding and coordination. Eureka is an open platform for international cooperation in innovation. Organisations and companies applying th ...
in
Humboldt County, California
Humboldt County () is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 136,463. The county seat is Eureka.
Humboldt County comprises the Eureka–Arcata–Fortuna, California Micropolitan Statistica ...
) was reported by Harte in San Francisco and New York. While serving as assistant editor of the ''Northern Californian'', Harte was left in charge of the paper during the temporary absence of his boss,
Stephen G. Whipple. Harte published a detailed account condemning the slayings, writing: "
more shocking and revolting spectacle never was exhibited to the eyes of a Christian and civilized people. Old women wrinkled and decrepit lay weltering in blood, their brains dashed out and dabbled with their long grey hair. Infants scarcely a span long, with their faces cloven with hatchets and their bodies ghastly with wounds."
After he published the editorial, Harte's life was threatened, and he was forced to flee one month later. Harte quit his job and moved to San Francisco, where an anonymous letter published in a city paper describing widespread community approval of the massacre was attributed to him,. In addition, no one was ever brought to trial, despite the evidence of a planned attack and of references to specific individuals, including a rancher named Larabee and other members of the unofficial militia called the
Humboldt Volunteers The Humboldt Volunteers, or Humboldt Dragoons, were a militia company formed by residents of the Eel River Valley, at Hydesville, Humboldt County, California in early February 1860. Seman Wright was elected captain, and E. D. Holland was elected ...
.
![BretHarte-PaintedIn1884ByJohnPettie(1839-1893)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/BretHarte-PaintedIn1884ByJohnPettie%281839-1893%29.jpg)
Harte married Anna Griswold on August 11, 1862, in
San Rafael, California
San Rafael ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for "Raphael (archangel), St. Raphael", ) is a city and the county seat of Marin County, California, Marin County, California, United States. The city is located in the North Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), ...
. From the start, the marriage was rocky. Some suggested that she was handicapped by extreme jealousy, while early Harte biographer Henry C. Merwin privately concluded that she was "almost impossible to live with".
[
The well-known minister ]Thomas Starr King
Thomas Starr King (December 17, 1824 – March 4, 1864), often known as Starr King, was an American Universalist and Unitarian minister, influential in California politics during the American Civil War, and Freemason. Starr King spoke z ...
recommended Harte to James T. Fields, editor of the prestigious magazine ''The Atlantic Monthly
''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science.
It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...
'', which published Harte's first short story in October 1863. In 1864, Harte joined with Charles Henry Webb
Charles Henry Webb (January 24, 1834 – May 24, 1905) was an American poet, author and journalist. He was particularly known for his parodies and humorous writings.
Biography
Webb was born at Rouse's Point, New York in 1834.
Webb worked as ...
in starting a new literary journal
A literary magazine is a periodical devoted to literature in a broad sense. Literary magazines usually publish short stories, poetry, and essays, along with literary criticism, book reviews, biographical profiles of authors, interviews and letters ...
called ''The Californian''. He became friends with and mentored poet Ina Coolbrith
Ina Donna Coolbrith (born Josephine Donna Smith; March 10, 1841 – February 29, 1928) was an American poet, writer, librarian, and a prominent figure in the San Francisco Bay Area literary community. Called the "Sweet Singer of California", sh ...
.
In 1865, Harte was asked by bookseller Anton Roman to edit a book of California poetry; it was to be a showcase of the finest California writers. When the book, called ''Outcroppings'', was published, it contained only 19 poets, many of them Harte's friends (including Ina Coolbrith
Ina Donna Coolbrith (born Josephine Donna Smith; March 10, 1841 – February 29, 1928) was an American poet, writer, librarian, and a prominent figure in the San Francisco Bay Area literary community. Called the "Sweet Singer of California", sh ...
and Charles Warren Stoddard
Charles Warren Stoddard (August 7, 1843 April 23, 1909) was an American author and editor best known for his travel books about Polynesian life.
Biography
Charles Warren Stoddard was born in Rochester, New York on August 7, 1843. He was desce ...
). The book caused some controversy, as Harte used the preface as a vehicle to attack California's literature, blaming the state's "monotonous climate" for its bad poetry. While the book was widely praised in the East, many newspapers and poets in the West took umbrage at his remarks.
In 1868, Harte became editor of ''The Overland Monthly
The ''Overland Monthly'' was a monthly literary and cultural magazine, based in California, United States. It was founded in 1868 and published between the second half of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century.
History
The '' ...
'', another new literary magazine, published by Roman Anton with the intention of highlighting local writings. The ''Overland Monthly'' was more in tune with the pioneering spirit of excitement in California. Harte's short story "The Luck of Roaring Camp
"The Luck of Roaring Camp" is a short story by American author Bret Harte. It was first published in the August 1868 issue of the ''Overland Monthly'' and helped push Harte to international prominence.
The story is about the birth of a baby boy i ...
" appeared in the magazine's second issue, propelling him to fame nationwide and in Europe.
When word of Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...
's death reached Harte in July 1870, he immediately sent a dispatch across the bay to San Francisco to hold back the forthcoming issue of the ''Overland Monthly'' for 24 hours so that he could compose the poetic tribute "Dickens in Camp".
Harte's fame increased with the publication of his satirical poem "Plain Language from Truthful James" in the September 1870 issue of the ''Overland Monthly''. The poem became better known by its alternate title "The Heathen Chinee
"The Heathen Chinee", originally published as "Plain Language from Truthful James", is a narrative poem by American writer Bret Harte. It was published for the first time in September 1870 in the '' Overland Monthly''.Railton, StephenHarte: "The ...
" after being republished in a Boston newspaper in 1871. It was also quickly republished in a number of other newspapers and journals, including the ''New York Evening Post
The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com.
It was established i ...
'', the ''New York Tribune
The ''New-York Tribune'' was an American newspaper founded in 1841 by editor Horace Greeley. It bore the moniker ''New-York Daily Tribune'' from 1842 to 1866 before returning to its original name. From the 1840s through the 1860s it was the domi ...
'', the ''Boston Evening Transcript
The ''Boston Evening Transcript'' was a daily afternoon newspaper in Boston, Massachusetts, published from July 24, 1830, to April 30, 1941.
Beginnings
''The Transcript'' was founded in 1830 by Henry Dutton and James Wentworth of the firm of D ...
'', the ''Providence Journal
''The Providence Journal'', colloquially known as the ''ProJo'', is a daily newspaper serving the metropolitan area of Providence, Rhode Island, and is the largest newspaper in Rhode Island. The newspaper was first published in 1829. The newspape ...
'', the ''Hartford Courant
The ''Hartford Courant'' is the largest daily newspaper in the U.S. state of Connecticut, and is considered to be the oldest continuously published newspaper in the United States. A morning newspaper serving most of the state north of New Haven ...
'', ''Prairie Farmer
''Prairie Farmer'' is a weekly newspaper which covers agricultural and rural news in the state of Illinois. It was first published in 1841 in Chicago, Illinois by John Stephen Wright and was called ''The Union Agriculturist and Western Prairie F ...
'', and the ''Saturday Evening Post
''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine, currently published six times a year. It was issued weekly under this title from 1897 until 1963, then every two weeks until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely c ...
''. Harte was chagrined, however, to find that the popularity of the poem, which he had written to criticize the prevalence of anti-Chinese sentiment
Anti-Chinese sentiment, also known as Sinophobia, is a fear or dislike of China, Chinese people or Chinese culture. It often targets Chinese minorities living outside of China and involves immigration, development of national identity i ...
among the white population of California, was largely the result of its being taken literally by the very people he had lampooned, who completely misconstrued the ironic intent of Harte's words.
Leaving the West
Harte was determined to pursue his literary career and traveled back east with his family in 1871 to New York and eventually to Boston, where he contracted with the publisher of ''The Atlantic Monthly
''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science.
It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...
'' for an annual salary of $10,000, "an unprecedented sum at the time". His popularity waned, however, and by the end of 1872, he was without a publishing contract and increasingly desperate. He spent the next few years struggling to publish new work or republish old and delivering lectures about the gold rush. The winter of 1877–78 was particularly hard for Harte and his family. He later recalled it as a "hand-to-mouth life" and wrote to his wife Anna, "I don't know—looking back—what ever kept me from going down, in ''every way'', during that awful December and January".
Some time between 1872 and 1881, Bret Harte rented The Willows The Willows may refer to:
Places
* The Willows, El Paso, Texas, USA
* The Willows, Queensland, a town in Australia
* The Willows, Salford, home of Salford Rugby League club in Salford, England, UK
* The Willows, Saskatoon, a residential community ...
, a mansion then owned by Union general and author Joseph Warren Revere.[ With ] Harte's time in Morristown inspired him to write 1877 historical romance novel ''Thankful Blossom.''
After months of soliciting for such a role, Harte accepted the position of United States Consul in the town of Krefeld
Krefeld ( , ; li, Krieëvel ), also spelled Crefeld until 1925 (though the spelling was still being used in British papers throughout the Second World War), is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located northwest of Düsseldorf, i ...
, Germany, in May 1878. Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...
had been a friend and supporter of Harte's until a substantial falling out, and he had previously tried to block any appointment for Harte. In a letter to William Dean Howells
William Dean Howells (; March 1, 1837 – May 11, 1920) was an American realist novelist, literary critic, and playwright, nicknamed "The Dean of American Letters". He was particularly known for his tenure as editor of ''The Atlantic Monthly'', ...
, he complained that Harte would be an embarrassment to the United States because, as he wrote, "Harte is a liar, a thief, a swindler, a snob, a sot, a sponge, a coward, a Jeremy Diddler, he is brim full of treachery... To send this nasty creature to puke upon the American name in a foreign land is too much". Eventually, Harte was given a similar role in Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
in 1880. In 1885 he settled in London. Throughout his time in Europe, he regularly wrote to his wife and children and sent monthly financial contributions. He declined, however, to invite them to join him, nor did he return to the United States to visit them. His excuses were usually related to money. During the 24 years that he spent in Europe, he never abandoned writing and maintained a prodigious output of stories that retained the freshness of his earlier work.
He died in Camberley
Camberley is a town in the Borough of Surrey Heath in Surrey, England, approximately south-west of Central London. The town is in the far west of the county, close to the borders of Hampshire and Berkshire. Once part of Windsor Forest, Cambe ...
, England, in 1902 of throat cancer
Head and neck cancer develops from tissues in the lip and oral cavity (mouth), larynx (throat), salivary glands, nose, sinuses or the skin of the face. The most common types of head and neck cancers occur in the lip, mouth, and larynx. Symptoms ...
and is buried at Frimley
Frimley is a town in the Borough of Surrey Heath in Surrey, England, approximately southwest of central London. The town is of Saxon origin, although it is not listed in Domesday Book of 1086.
Train services to Frimley (on the line between ...
. His wife Anna (née Griswold) Harte died on August 2, 1920. The couple lived together only 16 of the 40 years that they were married.
Reception
In 1878, Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans i ...
praised Harte in ''Round the World'' as uniquely American, likely alluding to his regionalism:
Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work.
...
also showed himself to be an admirer of Harte's writing. In ''From Sea to Sea and Other Sketches, Letters of Travel
''From Sea to Sea and Other Sketches, Letters of Travel'' is a book containing Rudyard Kipling's articles about his 1889 travels from India to Burma, China, Japan, and the United States en route to England
England is a country that is pa ...
'', while in San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
Kipling wrote:
Mark Twain, however, characterized him and his writing as insincere. Writing in his autobiography four years after Harte's death, Twain criticized the miners' dialect used by Harte, claiming that it never existed outside of his imagination. Additionally, Twain accused Harte of "borrowing" money from his friends with no intention of repaying it and of financially abandoning his wife and children. He referred repeatedly to Harte as "The Immortal Bilk."
Selected works
*''Outcroppings'' (1865), editor
*''Condensed Novels and Other Papers'' (1867)
*''Tennessee's Partner
''Tennessee's Partner'' is a 1955 American Western film directed by Allan Dwan, written by Graham Baker, D. D. Beauchamp, Milton Krims, and Teddi Sherman, with uncredited rewrites by Dwan, and starring John Payne, Ronald Reagan, Rhonda Fl ...
'' (short story; 1869)
*''The Luck of Roaring Camp
"The Luck of Roaring Camp" is a short story by American author Bret Harte. It was first published in the August 1868 issue of the ''Overland Monthly'' and helped push Harte to international prominence.
The story is about the birth of a baby boy i ...
, and Other Sketches'' (1870)
*"Plain Language from Truthful James", aka "The Heathen Chinee
"The Heathen Chinee", originally published as "Plain Language from Truthful James", is a narrative poem by American writer Bret Harte. It was published for the first time in September 1870 in the '' Overland Monthly''.Railton, StephenHarte: "The ...
" (1870)
*''Poems'' (1871)
*''The Heart's Foundation'' (1873)
*'' The Tales of the Argonauts'' (1875)
*''Gabriel Conroy'' (1876)
*''Two Men of Sandy Bar
Two Men of Sandy Bar is a 1916 American silent Western Melodrama directed by Lloyd B. Carleton and starring Hobart Bosworth, Gretchen Lederer along with Emory Johnson.
The film relies on a Bret Harte play penned in 1876. The film's main chara ...
'' (1876)
*''Thankful Blossom'' (1877)
*'' Drift from Two Shores'' (1878)
*'' An Heiress of Red Dog, and Other Tales'' (1879)
*''Flip and Found at Blazing Star'' (1882)
*''By Shore and Sedge'' (1885)
*''A Millionaire of Rough-And-Ready and Devil's Ford'' (1887)
*'' The Crusade of the Excelsior'' (1887)
*''The Argonauts of North Liberty
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
'' (1888)
*'' Cressy'' (1889)
*'' A First Family of Tasajara'' (1892)
*'' Colonel Starbottle's Client, and some other people'' (1892)
*'' A Protégée of Jack Hamlin's; and Other Stories'' (1894)
*''Barker's Luck etc.'' (1896)
*''Tales of Trail and Town'' (1898)
*''Stories in Light and Shadow'' (1898)
*''Under the Red-Woods'' (1901)
*'' Her Letter, His Answer, and Her Last Letter'' (1905)
Dramatic and musical adaptations
*Several film versions of "The Outcasts of Poker Flat
"The Outcasts of Poker Flat" (1869) is a short story written by writer of the American West Bret Harte. An example of naturalism and local color of California during the first half of the nineteenth century. The story was first published in Janua ...
" have been made, including one in 1937 with Preston Foster
Preston Stratton Foster (August 24, 1900 – July 14, 1970), was an American actor of stage, film, radio, and television, whose career spanned nearly four decades. He also had a career as a vocalist.
Early life
Born in Ocean City, New Jersey ...
and another in 1952 with Dale Robertson
Dayle Lymoine Robertson (July 14, 1923February 27, 2013) was an American actor best known for his starring roles on television. He played the roving investigator Jim Hardie in the television series '' Tales of Wells Fargo'' and railroad owner Be ...
.
*''Tennessee's Partner
''Tennessee's Partner'' is a 1955 American Western film directed by Allan Dwan, written by Graham Baker, D. D. Beauchamp, Milton Krims, and Teddi Sherman, with uncredited rewrites by Dwan, and starring John Payne, Ronald Reagan, Rhonda Fl ...
'' (1955) with John Payne and Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
was based on the story of the same name.
*Paddy Chayefsky
Sidney Aaron "Paddy" Chayefsky (January 29, 1923 – August 1, 1981) was an American playwright, screenwriter and novelist. He is the only person to have won three solo Academy Awards for writing both adapted and original screenplays.
He was ...
's treatment of the film version of '' Paint Your Wagon'' seems to borrow from "Tennessee's Partner": two close friends—one named "Pardner"—share the same woman. The Spaghetti Western
The Spaghetti Western is a broad subgenre of Western films produced in Europe. It emerged in the mid-1960s in the wake of Sergio Leone's film-making style and international box-office success. The term was used by foreign critics because most o ...
''Four of the Apocalypse
''Four of the Apocalypse'' ( it, I quattro dell'apocalisse) is a 1975 Italian Spaghetti Western film directed by Lucio Fulci and starring Fabio Testi, Tomas Milian, Lynne Frederick and Michael J. Pollard.
Plot
Set in the year 1873, professio ...
'' is based on "The Outcasts of Poker Flat" and "The Luck of Roaring Camp".
*The Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
movie '' Armed and Dangerous'' (russian: Вооружён и очень опасен, 1977) is based on '' Gabriel Conroy'' and another of Harte's stories.
*Operas based on "The Outcasts of Poker Flat" include those by Samuel Adler and by Stanford Beckler.
*The actor Craig Hill was cast as Harte in the 1956 episode, "Year of Destiny", on the syndicated anthology series
An anthology series is a radio, television, video game or film series that spans different genres and presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, season, segment, or short. These usually have a differ ...
''Death Valley Days
''Death Valley Days'' is an American old-time radio and television anthology series featuring true accounts of the American Old West, particularly the Death Valley country of southeastern California. Created in 1930 by Ruth Woodman, the program ...
'', hosted by Stanley Andrews
Stanley Andrews (born Stanley Martin Andrzejewski; August 28, 1891 – June 23, 1969) was an American actor perhaps best known as the voice of Daddy Warbucks on the radio program ''Little Orphan Annie'' and later as "The Old Ranger", the first ...
. The "year of destiny" is 1857, when Harte arrived in California. First a stagecoach guard, then a newspaper editor and schoolteacher, he slowly finds fame as a western writer.
Legacy
* Bret Harte Memorial in San Francisco
*There is a Bret Harte House- School of Journalism Humboldt State University Arcata, Ca
* Bret Harte, California, a census-designated place (CDP) in Stanislaus County
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Images, from top down, left to right: Modesto Arch, Knights Ferry's General Store, a view of the Tuolumne River from Waterford
, image_flag =
, i ...
* Twain Harte, a CDP in Tuolumne County, California
Tuolumne County (), officially the County of Tuolumne, is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 55,620. The county seat and only incorporated city is Sonora.
Tuolumne County comprises the ...
, named after both Mark Twain and Bret Harte.
*The Mark Twain Bret Harte Historic Trail (Marker Number 431 erected in 1948 by the California Centennial Commission), also named after both writers.
*Bret Harte Village in the Gold River community of Sacramento County. Sacramento, California
)
, image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg
, mapsize = 250x200px
, map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...
*Bret Harte Court, a street in Sacramento, California
)
, image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg
, mapsize = 250x200px
, map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...
*Bret Harte Library, a public library in Long Beach, California
Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California.
Incorporate ...
*Bret Harte Hall, Roaring Camp Railroads Felton, California
Felton is a census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Cruz County, California, United States. The population was 4,489 as of 2020 census and according to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , all of it land.
History
Named ...
*Bret Harte High School in Angels Camp, California
Angels Camp, also known as City of Angels and formerly Angel's Camp, Angels, Angels City, Carson's Creek and Clearlake, is the only incorporated city in Calaveras County, California, United States. The population was 3,836 at the 2010 census, up ...
is named after him.
*Bret Harte Lane in Humboldt Hill, California
Humboldt Hill is a census-designated place (CDP) in Humboldt County, California, United States. Humboldt Hill rises to an elevation of . The population was 3,414 at the 2010 census, up from 3,246 at the 2000 census. The area is in the 95503 zip c ...
.
*Bret Harte Elementary School in Chicago, Illinois
*Bret Harte Preparatory Middle School ( Vermont Vista) South Los Angeles, California
South Los Angeles, also known as South Central Los Angeles or simply South Central, is a region in southwestern Los Angeles County, lying mostly within the city limits of Los Angeles, south of downtown.
It is "defined on Los Angeles city maps as ...
* Bret Harte Middle School in San Jose, California
San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...
* Bret Harte Middle School in Oakland, California
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...
*Bret Harte Middle School in Hayward, California
Hayward () is a city located in Alameda County, California in the East Bay subregion of the San Francisco Bay Area. With a population of 162,954 as of 2020, Hayward is the sixth largest city in the Bay Area and the third largest in Alameda Coun ...
*Bret Harte Elementary in Corcoran, California
Corcoran is a city in Kings County, California. Corcoran is located south-southeast of Hanford, California, Hanford, at an elevation of . It is part of the Hanford, California, Hanford–Corcoran Hanford-Corcoran metropolitan area, Metropolitan S ...
*Bret Harte Street in Baldwin, New York
*Bret Harte Elementary in San Francisco, California
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
*Bret Harte Elementary in Burbank, California
Burbank is a city in the southeastern end of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located northwest of downtown Los Angeles, Burbank has a population of 107,337. The city was named after David Burbank, w ...
*Bret Harte Elementary in Cherry Hill, New Jersey
Cherry Hill is a township within Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the township had a population of 74,553, which reflected an increase of 3,508 (+4.94%) from the 71,045 counted in the 2010 census.
*Bret Harte Elementary in Sacramento, California
)
, image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg
, mapsize = 250x200px
, map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...
*Bret Harte Elementary School in Modesto, California
Modesto () is the county seat and largest city of Stanislaus County, California, United States. With a population of 218,464 at the 2020 census, it is the 19th largest city in the state of California and forms part of the Sacramento-Stockton- ...
*A community called The Shores of Poker Flat, California claims to have been the location of Poker Flat, although it is usually accepted that the story takes place further north.
*Bret Harte Road in Frimley
Frimley is a town in the Borough of Surrey Heath in Surrey, England, approximately southwest of central London. The town is of Saxon origin, although it is not listed in Domesday Book of 1086.
Train services to Frimley (on the line between ...
(the town in which Harte was buried) is named after him.
*Bret Harte Place in San Francisco, California is named after him.
*Bret Harte Lane, Bret Harte Road, and Harte Ave in San Rafael, California
San Rafael ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for "Raphael (archangel), St. Raphael", ) is a city and the county seat of Marin County, California, Marin County, California, United States. The city is located in the North Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), ...
.
*Bret Harte Terrace in San Francisco.
*Bret Harte Road in Berkeley, California
Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland and Emer ...
.
*Bret Harte Road in Redwood City, California
Redwood City is a city on the San Francisco Peninsula in Northern California's Bay Area, approximately south of San Francisco, and northwest of San Jose. Redwood City's history spans its earliest inhabitation by the Ohlone people to being a ...
.
*Bret Harte Road in Angels Camp, California
Angels Camp, also known as City of Angels and formerly Angel's Camp, Angels, Angels City, Carson's Creek and Clearlake, is the only incorporated city in Calaveras County, California, United States. The population was 3,836 at the 2010 census, up ...
.
*Bret Harte Road and Bret Harte Drive in Murphys, California
Murphys, originally Murphys New Diggings then Murphy's Camp, is an unincorporated village located in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada mountains in Calaveras County, California, Calaveras County, California, United States. T ...
.
*Bret Harte Avenue in Reno, Nevada
Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the ...
.
*Bret Harte House, at Humboldt State University
California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt also known as Cal Poly Humboldt, Humboldt or Cal Poly"Cal Poly" may also refer to California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, California or California State Polytechnic Universi ...
in Arcata, California
Arcata (; Wiyot language, Wiyot: ''Goudi’ni''; Yurok language, Yurok: ''Oket'oh'') is a city adjacent to the Arcata Bay (northern) portion of Humboldt Bay (United States), Humboldt Bay in Humboldt County, California, Humboldt County, Californ ...
.
*Bret Harte Alley in Arcata, California
Arcata (; Wiyot language, Wiyot: ''Goudi’ni''; Yurok language, Yurok: ''Oket'oh'') is a city adjacent to the Arcata Bay (northern) portion of Humboldt Bay (United States), Humboldt Bay in Humboldt County, California, Humboldt County, Californ ...
.
*Bret Harte Park in Danville, California
The Town of Danville is located in the San Ramon Valley in Contra Costa County, California. It is one of the incorporated municipalities in California that use "town" in their names instead of "city". The population was 43,582 at the 2020 census ...
.
*In 1987 Harte appeared on a $5 U.S.
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
Postage stamp, as part of the "Great Americans series
The Great Americans series is a set of definitive stamps issued by the United States Postal Service, starting on December 27, 1980, with the 19¢ stamp depicting Sequoyah, and continuing through 1999, the final stamp being the 55¢ Justin S. Mo ...
" of issues.Scott catalog
The Scott catalogue of postage stamps, published by Scott Publishing Company, now a subsidiary of Amos Media, is updated annually and lists all the stamps of the world that its editors recognize as issued for postal purposes. It is published in f ...
# 2196.
References
External links
Western American Literature Journal: Bret Harte
*
Bret Harte Etexts
*
*
*
*
Guide to the Bret Harte Collection
at The Bancroft Library
The Bancroft Library in the center of the campus of the University of California, Berkeley, is the university's primary special-collections library. It was acquired from its founder, Hubert Howe Bancroft, in 1905, with the proviso that it retai ...
*
Bret Harte letters collection
at the Mortimer Rare Book Collection
The Mortimer Rare Book Collection (MRBC) is the rare books collection of Smith College. Along with the Sophia Smith Collection and Smith College Archives, it makes up Smith College Special Collections. The collection supports both general researc ...
, Smith College Special Collections
Bret Harte letters and postal cover, 1874-1986
California State Library, California History Room.
Poems by Francis Bret Harte
at English Poetry
Research Encyclopedias
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harte, Bret
1836 births
1902 deaths
Writers from Albany, New York
Writers from San Rafael, California
American male short story writers
American male poets
American people of Dutch descent
American people of French descent
American people of German-Jewish descent
Deaths from throat cancer
Deaths from cancer in England
American male dramatists and playwrights
19th-century American poets
19th-century American dramatists and playwrights
19th-century American short story writers
19th-century American male writers