Dr. William Starbuck Mayo (April 15, 1811 – November 22, 1895) was an American physician and author who created the fantasy worlds "Kaloola" and "Framazugda".

Early life

Mayo was born in

Ogdensburg, New York Ogdensburg ( moh, Kaniatarahòn:tsi) is a city in St. Lawrence County, New York, United States. The population was 10,436 at the 2019 census. In the late 18th century, European-American settlers named the community after American land owner and de ...

on April 15, 1811. He was the son of Obed Mayo, a shipbuilder, and Elizabeth (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Starbuck) Mayo. On his father's side, he was descended from the Rev. John Mayo, the first minister of the North Church in Boston. On his mother's side, he was descended from the

Nantucket Nantucket () is an island about south from Cape Cod. Together with the small islands of Tuckernuck and Muskeget, it constitutes the Town and County of Nantucket, a combined county/town government that is part of the U.S. state of Massachuse ...

whaling and merchant Starbuck family.

Career

Mayo attended an academy in

Potsdam Potsdam () is the capital and, with around 183,000 inhabitants, largest city of the German state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream of B ...

and after choosing a career in medicine, he studied under two local physicians before attending the College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York (today a part of

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

). After completing his medical studies in 1832, he practiced for a few years in Ogdensburg, but after due to ill health, he left America to take a tour of

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

and the Barbary Coast of

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

. His subsequent work as an author was largely based on these travel experiences. Mayo returned to America, relocated his medical practice to New York City, and began to write professionally.

Personal life

In 1851, Mayo was married to Helen Cornelia (née Stuyvesant) Dudley Olmsted (1808–1890). By the time of their marriage, Helen was a widow of Henry Dudley and Francis Olmsted. She was the daughter of

Nicholas William Stuyvesant Nicholas William Stuyvesant (1769 – March 11, 1833) was a New York landowner and merchant who was a great-great-grandson of Peter Stuyvesant, the last Dutch Director-General of New Amsterdam. Early life Stuyvesant was born in New York City in ...

(and a descendant of

Peter Stuyvesant Peter Stuyvesant (; in Dutch also ''Pieter'' and ''Petrus'' Stuyvesant, ; 1610 – August 1672)Mooney, James E. "Stuyvesant, Peter" in p.1256 was a Dutch colonial officer who served as the last Dutch director-general of the colony of New Net ...

, the last Dutch

Director-General of New Netherland This is a list of Directors, appointed by the Dutch West India Company, of the 17th century Dutch province of New Netherland (''Nieuw-Nederland'' in Dutch) in North America. Only the last, Peter Stuyvesant, held the title of Director General. As t ...

) and the former Catherine Livingston Reade, a descendant of Gilbert Livingston and

Robert Livingston the Elder The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...

, the first

Lord of Livingston Manor Livingston Manor was a tract of land in the Province of New York granted to Robert Livingston the Elder during the reign of George I of Great Britain. History Livingston Manor was a tract of land in the colonial Province of New York granted ...

. Helen and William had no children together. He died in New York on November 22, 1895. His funeral was held at St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery in Manhattan.

Bibliography

* ''Kaloolah, or, Journeyings to the Djébel Kumri: an autobiography of Jonathan Romer.'' New York, G. P. Putnam; London, D. Bogue, 1849. * ''Berber; or, The mountaineer of the Atlas. A tale of Morocco.'' New York : G. P. Putnam; tc., etc. 1850. * ''Romance dust from the historic placer.'' New York, G. P. Putnam; tc., etc.1851. * ''Flood and field'' Philadelphia, W. P. Hazard, 1855. * ''To the Hon. Gideon Welles, Secretary of the Navy.'' ew York? : s.n., 1862 * ''Never again'' New York, G.P. Putnam & sons, 1873.

Early life

Career

Personal life

Bibliography

References

External links

Further reading