Marquis James

Marquis James (August 29, 1891 – November 19, 1955) was an American author and journalist, twice awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his works The Raven: A Biography of Sam Houston and The Life of Andrew Jackson.

Early life and education Marquis James was born on August 29, 1891, in Springfield, Missouri, the fifth child and only son of Houstin James (December 18, 1844, Pike Co., Ohio – August 18, 1908, Enid, Oklahoma), a lawyer, and Rachel Leo Marquis (July 14, 1848, Jay Co., Indiana – May 22, 1930, Enid, Oklahoma), a schoolteacher (daughter of Dr. James Marquis and Mary Cosner). While unsuccessful in 1889, Houstin successfully staked a claim southeast of Enid, Oklahoma in the 1893 run and moved his family there. Marquis James was educated at East Hill School and Central, and graduated Enid High School in 1910. He attended one year of college at Oklahoma Christian University (later Phillips University).

Career

During high school Marquis James helped found the Quill, Enid's student newspaper. Following high school he worked at various newspapers across the country, including as a rewrite editor for the New York Tribune in 1916.

Personal life and death James married fellow reporter Bessie Williams Rowland in 1914. The two collaborated on children's books based on James' Pulitzer Prize–winning biographies. They had one daughter, Cynthia. After 38 years of marriage, James and Rowland divorced in 1952. James married Jacqueline Mary Parsons in 1954. Marquis James died suddenly at the age of sixty-four of a cerebral hemorrhage on November 19, 1955. He was working on a biography of Booker T. Washington at the time of his death. The Public Library of Enid and Garfield County dedicated the Marquis James room to him in 1964 which contains artifacts relating to James' life and career; in 2016 the library was designated a National Literary Landmark in his honor.