Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography/Knapp, Samuel Lorenzo

KNAPP, Samuel Lorenzo, author, b. in Newburyport, Mass., 19 Jan., 1783; d. in Hopkinton, Mass., 8 July, 1838. He was graduated at Dartmouth in 1804, studied law with Chief-Justice Theophilus Parsons, and attained to eminence in his profession. During the war of 1812 he commanded a regiment of militia on the coast defences. He became editor of the "Boston Gazette" in 1824, also conducting the "Boston Monthly Magazine," and in 1826 he established the "National Republican," on the failure of which, two years afterward, he removed to New York city, and returned to the practice of his profession. His works, which are chiefly biographical, include "Travels in North America by Ali Bey" (Boston, 1818); "Biographical Sketches of Eminent Lawyers, Statesmen, and Men of Letters" (1821); "Memoirs of Gen. Lafayette" (1824); "The Genius of Freemasonry" (Providence, 1828); "Discourse on the Life and Character of De Witt Clinton" (1828); "Lectures on American Literature" (New York, 1829); "Sketches of Public Characters by Ignatius Loyola Robertson, LL. D. " (1830); "American Biography" (1833); a revised edition of John Hinton's "History of the United States" (1834); "Life of Thomas Eady" (1834); "Advice in the Pursuit of Literature" (1835); "Memoir of the Life of Daniel Webster" (1835); "Life of Aaron Burr" (1835); "Life of Andrew Jackson" (1835); "The Bachelor, and Other Tales" (1836); and "Female Biography" (Philadelphia, 1843). He edited "The Library of American History" (New York, 1837).