Gertrude Potter Daniels

Gertrude Potter Daniels (September 20, 1876 – July 12, 1940) was an American novelist.

Early life and education

She was the daughter of steel magnate Orrin Woodward Potter. Her sister, Margaret Horton Potter, also became a novelist.

Her novel The Warners (1901) centers on Cyrus Warner, an orphan who works his way up to owning an oil well, but is pressured by monopolistic magnates. The novel also focuses on poor working conditions, as well as a married pair of anarchists, Kirby and Ira Fisher, the latter modeled on Emma Goldman. Kirby throws a bomb at a demonstration, aiming at police but instead killing his own wife and child.

Her novel Eshek the Oppressor (1902) focuses on oil monopolies. It was withdrawn by the publisher shortly after publication, officially to fix typographical errors, but news reports claim it was due to the "socialistic character" of the novel.

Personal life In 1890, she married F. Lee Rust, but that marriage was annulled. She then married Julius Clarke Daniels.

Gertrude Potter Daniels died on July 12, 1940, age 63, in Pasadena, California.