Literary New Jersey
For the New Jersey Author Adventures Trail, we profile the birthplace of James Fenimore Cooper, a childhood home of Stephen Crane, the college library of F. Scott Fitzgerald, the home of newspaper icon T. Thomas Fortune, and the clinic of Dr. James Still, an herbalist and writer. These geniuses are perhaps only connected by the geography of New Jersey, as they are from very different eras and write about different subjects. However, a common thread in their works may be that they represent a social commentary about the people of the time.
Collectively, these writers span two centuries of US writers. The earliest is James Fenimore Cooper, followed by T. Thomas Fortune, Dr. James Still, Stephen Crane, and then F. Scott Fitzgerald.
Beginning in 1969, one of the most famous Young Adult authors in US history emerged from New Jersey–Judy Blume. She wrote bestselling books, including the continuously popular Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. In 2010, Blume was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame, which has a mobile museum. Later in life, she moved to the Florida Keys.
Click any link below for author and place information.
A. Stephen Crane, Asbury Park
B. T. Thomas Fortune, Red Bank
C. F. Scott Fitzgerald, Princeton
D. James Fenimore Cooper and Dr. James Still, Burlington County
E. Walt Whitman, Camden
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