This collection of fourteen life stories, originally published in 1904 and illustrated with 36 photographs, offers an excellent view into America’s past and some of the people who made her great. Biographer Sherman Williams specifically selected Americans, both men and women, who began life in!less than ideal circumstances and went on to become truly successful people, individuals who made an impact on their world.

Sherman’s intent was to offer encouragement and hope to young people, a concrete reassurance that no matter his background it is possible for any man (or woman) to make something of himself. As well as being informative biographies of some who are important in history, these stories still accomplish that same purpose today.

Biographies include Abraham Lincoln, Peter Cooper, Mary Lyon, Horace Greeley, Cyrus Hall McCormick, Frances Willard, Louisa M. Alcott, Alexander H. Stephens, Leland Stanford, Charles Pratt, Cornelius Vanderbilt, Eli Whitney, Henry Clay, and Benjamin Franklin.