Marvin Hill Dana (March 2, 1867 – April 3, 1926) was an American author and journalist.

Life

Dana was born in

Cornwall, Vermont Cornwall is a town in Addison County, Vermont, United States. It was founded November 3, 1761. The population was 1,207 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Geography Cornwall is located in south-central Addison County, in the Champlain ...

to Edward Summers Dana and Mary Howe Dana (née Squier). He was the younger brother of

Charles S. Dana Charles S. Dana (September 13, 1862 – December 29, 1939) was a Vermont farmer, newspaper correspondent and politician who served as Speaker of the Vermont House of Representatives. Biography Charles Summers Dana was born in New Haven, Vermon ...

. After graduating from Beeman Academy in

New Haven, Vermont New Haven is a town in Addison County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,683 at the 2020 census. In addition to the town center, New Haven contains the communities of Belden (sometimes called Belden Falls), Brooksville, New Haven Juncti ...

, he attended

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a private liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalists, Middlebury was the first operating college or university in Vermont. The college currently enrolls 2,858 undergraduates from all ...

, where he received a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree in 1886 and a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

in 1889. He also obtained a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

from

Albany Law School Albany Law School is a private law school in Albany, New York. It was founded in 1851 and is the oldest independent law school in the nation. It is accredited by the American Bar Association and has an affiliation agreement with University at A ...

in 1888. After working as a lawyer in Missouri and New York, he did post-graduate studies at

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 ...

and attended the

General Theological Seminary The General Theological Seminary of the Episcopal Church (GTS) is an Episcopal seminary in New York City. Founded in 1817, GTS is the oldest seminary of the Episcopal Church and the longest continuously operating Seminary in the Anglican Communi ...

. During this time he wrote his first published book, a collection of poetry titled ''Mater Christi and Other Poems''. He was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

in the Episcopal Church in June 1893. He served at St. John's Episcopal Church in

Stillwater, New York Stillwater is a town in Saratoga County, New York, United States, with a population of 8,287 at the 2010 census. The town contains a village called Stillwater. The town is at the eastern border of the county, southeast of Saratoga Springs and ...

, then at the Church of the Messiah in

Rensselaer, New York Rensselaer is a city in Rensselaer County, New York, United States, and is located on the east side of the Hudson River, directly opposite of Albany. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 9,210. Rensselaer is on the western border of ...

. Dana left the ministry and turned to journalism. He worked for the ''

New York Herald The ''New York Herald'' was a large-distribution newspaper based in New York City that existed between 1835 and 1924. At that point it was acquired by its smaller rival the ''New-York Tribune'' to form the '' New York Herald Tribune''. His ...

'', then in 1896 he was the editor of ''The Hungarian-American'' magazine. He moved to London, where he edited the satirical magazine '' Judy'' from 1897 to 1900 and wrote poems and articles for ''

The Pall Mall Gazette ''The Pall Mall Gazette'' was an evening newspaper founded in London on 7 February 1865 by George Murray Smith; its first editor was Frederick Greenwood. In 1921, '' The Globe'' merged into ''The Pall Mall Gazette'', which itself was absorbed int ...

''. His first novel, ''The Woman of Orchids'', was published in 1901. He returned to New York to work at another magazine, ''

The Smart Set ''The Smart Set'' was an American literary magazine, founded by Colonel William d'Alton Mann and published from March 1900 to June 1930. Its headquarters was in New York City. During its Jazz Age heyday under the editorship of H. L. Mencken and G ...

'', first as an assistant editor, then as editor from 1902 to 1904. Dana married his cousin Gertrude M. Hill in July 1894. They divorced in 1905. Dana married Florence Mabel Elliot in September 1911. Dana died in New York City on April 3, 1926.

Works

Dana's writings included non-fiction, poetry, and novels.

Fiction and poetry

* ''Mater Christi and Other Poems'' (1890) * ''The Woman of Orchids'' (1901) * ''A Puritan Witch'' (1903) * ''The Master Mind'' (1913), based on a play by Daniel D. Carter * ''The Shooting of Dan McGrew'' (1915), based on a poem by

Robert W. Service Robert William Service (January 16, 1874 – September 11, 1958) was a British-Canadian poet and writer, often called "the Bard of the Yukon". The middle name 'William' was in honour of a rich uncle. When that uncle neglected to provide for hi ...

* ''Within the Law'' (1913), based on a play by

Bayard Veiller Bayard Veiller (January 2, 1869 – January 16, 1943) was an American playwright, screenwriter, producer and film director. He wrote for 32 films between 1915 and 1941. Biography He was born on January 2, 1869, in Brooklyn, New York to Phi ...

* ''The Lake Mystery'' (1923) * ''The Mystery of the Third Parrot'' (1924)

Non-fiction

* ''A Perfect Memory: How to Have and Keep It'' (1917) * ''How to Train Your Mind: A Practical Method for the Development of Mental Power'' (1918) * ''Military Pyrotechnics'' (1919), co-authored with Henry B. Faber * ''Spelling Made Easy'' (1919) * ''Shorthand Made Easy'' (1919) * ''Grammar Made Easy'' (1919) * ''Arithmetic Made Easy'' (1919) * ''Law at a Glance'' (1920) * ''The American Encyclopedia of Etiquette and Culture'' (1922)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dana, Marvin 1867 births 1926 deaths 19th-century American Episcopalians 19th-century American poets 20th-century American novelists Albany Law School alumni American Episcopal priests American magazine editors Middlebury College alumni Novelists from Vermont People from Cornwall, Vermont 20th-century American non-fiction writers