Francis Whiting Halsey

Francis Whiting Halsey (October 15, 1851 – November 24, 1919) was an American journalist, editor and historian, born in Unadilla, New York. He was the son of Dr. Gaius Leonard Halsey, a Civil War surgeon, and Juliet (Cartington) Halsey. He was the grandson of Dr. Gaius and Mary (Church) Halsey of Kortright, New York, and a descendant of Thomas Halsey, who emigrated from England before 1640 and helped to found the settlement of Southampton, Long Island, one of the earliest English settlements in New York.

Francis Halsey prepared for college at the Unadilla academy and graduated from Cornell University in 1873, taking one of the prizes for an essay in English literature. He was assistant editor of the Binghamton Times (1873–1875), a member of the editorial staff of the New York Tribune (1875–1880), and in 1880 joined the staff of the New York Times as foreign editor and writer of book reviews. He was literary editor of the Times from 1892 through 1896, and became the first editor of the Times Saturday Review of Books and Art in 1896. In 1902, he left the Review to become a literary advisor to D. Appleton & Company. Subsequently, he joined Funk and Wagnalls in the same capacity, remaining with that publisher until his death.

Halsey was a prolific author and editor. His original works included travel writing (Two Months Abroad, collecting his reportage for the Tribune on the Paris World's Fair (1878)), New York State history ( (1901), The Pioneers of Unadilla Village, 1784-1840 (1902), and a number of articles), literary criticism (Our Literary Deluge And Some of Its Deeper Waters (1902)) and family history (extended introduction to Thomas Halsey of Hertfordshire, England and Southampton, Long Island (1895)).

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