E4902s

Literary Arts

Mark Twain (Samuel L. Clemens)

Writer, Humorist, Entrepreneur, Publisher, and Lecturer

Fred Collins Signature

Collins Cover Announcement 

Mark Twain

A Lifetime of Adventure and Accomplishment

Samuel Langhorne Clemens was born on November 30, 1835. He grew up in Hannibal, Missouri on the banks of the mighty Mississippi River. When Sam was twelve his father died, and he then went to work as an apprentice printer at the local neWspaper to help his family. Within a few years, he was writing acclaimed stories and articles for the "Hannibal Journal. "

In later life he wrote that being "a steamboatman" was the main ambition of his youthful friends and himself. In the 1850s, Clemens did indeed become a riverboat pilot, and that young Mark Twain is pictured at the left in this Collins cachet. In the 1860s Sam traveled westward and prospected for silver and gold. He then became a writer for the "Territorial Enterprise" newspaper in Virginia City, Nevada. It was there that he began using his famous pen name Mark Twain. It was a measuring term used during his riverboat days to denote a water depth of 12 feet.

Twain then moved to California where he continued to work at newspapers and wrote his first book "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County. " As a reporter he visited Hawaii, Europe, and the Middle East. In 1870 Twain married and moved to Hartford, Connecticut. It was there from 1876 to 1884 that he wrote many of his most famous works. The middle portrayal in my cachet is of this time period during the famous author's life.

In the 1890s, Twain went on international lecture tours that further grew his fame. His work would influence many future writers including Faulkner, Wolfe, and Hemingway. On April 21, 1910 he passed away after living an extraordinary life. The depiction of Twain on the right side of my individually hand painted cachet is the elder author as he appeared in those fmal years of his life. From riverboat captain and adventurer to accomplished author to elder world-famous eminent literary personality, Samuel Clemens truly had a life of adventure and achievement. This cover captures him, in watercolors, during his marvelous personal journey. Now ready is my First Day Cover for the incomparable American author. For Mark Twain — Collins #E4902 at $14.00.