Mark Twain Quick Facts - Quick Facts

Birth

November 30, 1835

Death

April 21, 1910

Place of Birth

Florida, Missouri

Known For

Humorous, often satirical writing that exposes hypocrisy and corruption while examining small-town life in America in the 19th century

Milestones

1847 Worked as a printer's apprentice in Hannibal, Missouri, and thereafter began working at his brother Orion's newspaper

1853-1856 Traveled to St. Louis, New York, and Philadelphia, working as a journeyman printer

Late 1850s Wrote for the Keokuk Post

1857-1861 Apprenticed himself to a steamboat pilot on the Mississippi River and earned his pilot license

1861-1864 Moved to Nevada with his brother to explore mining possibilities, and continued on to San Francisco where he worked as a journalist

1867 Published his first book, The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County, and other Sketches

1876 Published the novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, the story of a young boy's escapades while growing up along the Mississippi River

1882 Published the novel The Prince and the Pauper

1884 Published the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, considered to be his masterpiece

1889 Published the novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

1894 Published the novel The Tragedy of Pudd'nhead Wilson

Quote

'Hain't we got all the fools in town on our side? And ain't that a big enough majority in any town?' The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, ch. 26 (1884)

Did You Know

Mark Twain, the pseudonym used by Samuel Langhorne Clemens, first appeared on February 3, 1863, in a piece he contributed to the Virginia City Territorial Enterprise.

Prior to adopting Mark Twain as his pen name, Clemens wrote under the pen name Thomas Jefferson Snodgrass for three humorous pieces he contributed to the Keokuk Post.

On the Mississippi River, 'mark twain' meant 'two fathoms deep.'

Twain received an honorary doctorate from Oxford University in 1907.

To pay off debts accumulated as a result of failed business ventures, Twain toured the world as a lecturer, publishing his experiences in Following the Equator (1897).