Porter Cornelius Bliss (December 28, 1838 – February 1, 1885), was an American journalist, linguist, historian and diplomat. Bliss was a volunteer in defense of the capital, served in various government positions and traveled extensively; he was once accused of treason and conspiracy, and imprisoned before being rescued by a United States Navy Squadron.
He served as an editor of the ''Washington Chronicle'' from 1869 to 1870 and as an editor and biographer at the ''
New York Herald'' from 1878 through 1881.
Bliss also spent three years working on ''Johnson's Cyclopedia'' and edited a weekly called ''The Literary Table''.
Biography
Bliss was born to parents, Reverend Asher (1801–1881) and Cassandra (Hooper) Bliss, on the
Cattaraugus Reservation, Erie County, New York
Cattaraugus Reservation is an Indian reservation located partly in Erie County, New York, United States. The population was 1,833 at the 2010 census.
The largest part of the reservation is in Erie County; smaller portions are located in Catta ...
of
Seneca Indians
The Seneca () ( see, Onödowáʼga:, "Great Hill People") are a group of Indigenous Iroquoian-speaking people who historically lived south of Lake Ontario, one of the five Great Lakes in North America. Their nation was the farthest to the west ...
on December 28, 1838.
His father was a minister to the Seneca Indians.
He studied at
Hamilton College
Hamilton College is a private liberal arts college in Clinton, Oneida County, New York. It was founded as Hamilton-Oneida Academy in 1793 and was chartered as Hamilton College in 1812 in honor of inaugural trustee Alexander Hamilton, following ...
and
Yale College
Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...
, then traveled in Maine,
New Brunswick
New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...
, and
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
(1860–61), investigating the condition of the Indian tribes in behalf of societies at Boston. Bliss was employed for some months as clerk in the
Indian Bureau
The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States federal agency within the Department of the Interior. It is responsible for implementing federal laws and policies related to American Indians and Al ...
, and subsequently in the post-office department at Washington in 1861. He was elected a member of the
American Antiquarian Society
The American Antiquarian Society (AAS), located in Worcester, Massachusetts, is both a learned society and a national research library of pre-twentieth-century American history and culture. Founded in 1812, it is the oldest historical society i ...
in 1861.
Bliss took part in volunteer organizations for the defense of the capital, visited England the same year, and accompanied General
James Watson Webb
General James Watson Webb (February 8, 1802 – June 7, 1884) was a United States diplomat, newspaper publisher and a New York politician in the Whig and Republican parties.
Early life
Webb was born in Claverack, New York to Catherine Louisa ...
as private secretary on his mission to
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
(1861–63). He was commissioner of the Government of the
Argentine Republic
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
for the exploration of the Indian country called the Gran Chaco 1863 and edited at
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
a monthly periodical, ''The River Platte Magazine'' in 1864.
Bliss was appointed by President
Francisco Solano López
Francisco Solano López Carrillo (24 July 1827 – 1 March 1870) was President of Paraguay from 1862 until his death in 1870. He was the eldest son of Juana Pabla Carrillo and of President Carlos Antonio López, Francisco's predecessor.
...
, as historiographer of
Paraguay
Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...
and became secretary to Hon.
Charles Ames Washburn, U.S. minister to
Paraguay
Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...
in 1866; he aided him in collecting materials for his ''History of Paraguay'' (2 vols., 1871). He was imprisoned by the command of López on a charge of treason and conspiracy for his assassination September 10, 1868 and while imprisoned wrote, under duress, a deliberately falsified account of the U.S. legation's plan, retracted after his rescue by a U.S. Navy squadron December 10, 1868. Bliss was later appointed as translator to the
State Department at Washington, March, 1869 and served as editor of the ''Washington Chronicle'' (1869–70).
President Grant appointed him secretary of legation in
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
(1870–74), and acting minister for several months, (1872–73). He afterward resided in New York, and was vice-president of the
American Philological Society and an editor of the ''New York Herald'' from 1878 through 1881.
he also did editing work for the ''New Haven News'' in 1883.
Bliss died in New York, February 1, 1885. He is buried at the family plot at Randolph Cemetery, in Cattaraugus County, New York.
Bibliography
A collection of the Porter Cornelius Bliss Papers are available at the Latin American Library at
Tulane University
Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into a comprehensive pub ...
.
A selection of his works are listed below.
* ''The Ethnography of the Gran Chaco'', Buenos Aires, 1864.
* ''The conquest of Turkey'', co-author with L.P. Brockett, Hubbard Bros., 1878.
*''Causes and consequences of the Paraguayan war'', place and date of publication unknown.
*''Correspondence and other documents concerning the relations of the United States with Paraguay, the Argentine Republic, Uruguay and Brazil during the Paraguayan War (papers)'', Washington, Government Printing Office, 1868–69.
* ''Catalogue of the library of the late Porter C. Bliss'', Taylor, 1885.
References
This article incorporates text from the
Universal Cyclopædia & Atlas, 1902, New York, D. Appleton & Co., a publication now in the
public domain
The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly waived, or may be inapplicable. Because those rights have expired, ...
.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bliss, Porter Cornelius
1838 births
1885 deaths
People from Erie County, New York
19th-century American diplomats
Hamilton College (New York) alumni
19th-century American journalists
American male journalists
19th-century American male writers
Members of the American Antiquarian Society
Journalists from New York (state)
Yale College alumni