Horatio Alger, Jr.; January 13, 1832 – July 18, 1899

He was a prolific 19th-century American author, best known for his many juvenile novels about impoverished boys and their rise from humble backgrounds to lives of middle-class security and comfort through hard work, determination, courage, and honesty. His writings were characterised by the "rags-to-riches" narrative, which had a formative effect on America during the Gilded Age. His popularity—and income—dwindled in the 1890s.

In 1896, he had (what he called) a "nervous breakdown"; he relocated permanently to his sister's home in South Natick, Massachusetts. Before his death, Alger asked Edward Stratemeyer to complete his unfinished works. In 1901, “Young Captain Jack” was completed by Stratemeyer and promoted as Alger's last work.

Alger once estimated that he earned only $100,000 between 1866 and 1896; at his death he had little money, leaving only small sums to family and friends. His literary work was bequeathed to his niece, to two boys he had casually adopted, and to his sister Olive Augusta, who destroyed his manuscripts and his letters at his wish.

(Excerpt from Wikipedia)