Memoirs of Jeremiah Curtin

Memoirs of Jeremiah Curtin

Author: Alma Cardell Curtin

Year: 1910

Memoirs of Jeremiah Curtin is a detailed autobiography compiled by Alma Cardell Curtin, the wife of Jeremiah Curtin, an American linguist, translator, and folklorist. The memoir draws from a manuscript dictated by Curtin to his wife, who sometimes rewrote and edited his material multiple times. The text remains largely faithful to the Curtins' original writing, with minor adjustments to spelling, punctuation, and paragraphing. The book chronicles Curtin's life, travels, and scholarly pursuits. Born to an Irish Catholic family in Detroit, Michigan, Curtin grew up on a farm in Greenfield, Wisconsin. The memoir’s early sections focus on his rural boyhood and his determination to pursue a scholarly education despite financial and familial challenges. Defying his parents' preference for a Catholic college, he attended Harvard, graduating in 1863 under the mentorship of folklorist Francis James Child. After Harvard, Curtin moved to New York, where he studied law, worked for the U.S. Sanitary Commission, and taught languages while honing his translation skills. In 1864, Curtin traveled to St. Petersburg, Russia, serving as Secretary to the American legation under Cassius Clay. The memoir