WILKIE, Franc

WILKIE, Franc. (West Charlton, NY, July 2, 1982--Aug. 13, 1892). Wilkie wrote many highly valued histories of the CIVIL WAR based on his first-hand observations. Among these are Pen and Powder, Walks About Chicago, Personal Reminiscences of Thirty-Five Years of Journalism, and The Iowa First, Letters From the War. The latter book is a collection of articles he wrote for the Dubuque Herald during the first months of the war.

Wilkie first worked on the Schenectady Star before coming to Davenport, Iowa. With a Union College classmate, Wilkie and his brother began a newspaper called the Daily Evening News. (1) This paper closed during the PANIC OF 1857. Moving to Elgin, Illinois, he joined Thomas Grosvenor, a law student, in publishing the Campaign Weekly. (2) In November, 1858 he wrote to several newspapers for work but received only one answer--from the Dubuque Herald. He took the job for ten dollars per week and worked from nine in the morning until 2:00 a.m. the following morning when the paper was printed.

When the Civil War began, the Dennis MAHONY, sent Wilkie to travel with the first two Dubuque companies of soldiers to answer President's call for troops. His pay remained ten dollars per week, but he was required to pay his own expenses. After the Battle of Wilson's Creek, Wilkie returned briefly to Iowa. He discovered that he was a local hero and celebrity. At the same time, he published his most famous book, The Iowa First: Letters from the War (1861). Sharing the hardships of the Iowa First, Wilkie's recollections were full of camp news that reflected the excitement of the times without wandering from the truth. The Iowa First established Wilkie as one of the premier newspapermen of the time. It is still considered one of the best examples of Wilkie's writings.

Wilkie's reporting received the attention of the New York Times which hired him as its war correspondent for the western campaign. His pay increased to $7.50 for each column of type he produced and all his expenses were paid. He once turned himself over to the Confederates to get information for an article from the "other side."

In time believing the campaign in the West was over, Wilkie took a job writing editorials for the Chicago Times. He co-founded the Chicago Press Association and began the Times London bureau. (3) In 1871 he wrote Sketches of Notices of the Chicago Bar; Including the Most Prominent Lawyers and Judges of the City and Suburban Towns. (4) His Sketches Beyond the Sea was published in 1879. (5)

In the year he died, Wilkie's Thirty-Five Years of Journalism was published. (6) The book contained first-hand accounts of Dubuque from 1858 to 1861.

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Source:

1. Salvaterra, David L. "Making of a Democratic Newspaper Man," Julien's Journal, August 2013, p. 42

2. Ibid.

3. Ibid., p. 48

4. Wilkie, Franc. Sketches and Notices of the Chicago Bar: Including the More Prominent Lawyers and Judges of the City and Suburban Towns. Online: https://archive.org/details/cu31924018821722

5. Kennedy, William A. "Dubuque of 1858-1861 Called a Tough Town," Telegraph Herald, Feb. 4, 1940, p. 5. Online: http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ghJRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=jckMAAAAIBAJ&pg=2870,1677217&dq=fist+dubuque&hl=en

6. Wilkie, Franc. Sketches Beyond the Sea. ebook. Online: https://openlibrary.org/search?place_facet=Europe&author_key=OL1605653A&first_publish_year=1879&subject_facet=Accessible+book&has_fulltext=true

Hudson, David; Bergman, Marvin and Horton, Loren. The Biographical Dictionary of Iowa. University of Iowa Press, Iowa City, 2008