Biography

William Dana Orcutt was a best selling author and expert on printing techniques and book design. He was son of Hiram and Ellen Dana Orcutt and was born on 18 April, 1870, at West Lebanon, New Hampshire. His father was a well known minister, educator and author. Orcutt's mother also worked in education as a school administrator. While attending Harvard University in 1892 Orcutt won the intercollegiate tennis championship for that year and a mixed doubles tournament with the former Alice Dorothy Wilson. Their marriage the following year was tragically cut short when she died in 1894, a few weeks after the birth of their son Reginald.

William Orcutt was a novelist, biographer, lecturer and a historian. He wrote a number of books on the history of printing and book making and is credited for advancing printing as an art form. He served as vice-president and general manager of University Press in Cambridge, Massachusetts and later in a similar capacity with Plimpton Press in Norwood, Massachusetts. Orcutt was also an active member of Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. He was the author of "Robert Cavelier: The Romance of the Sieur de La Salle and His Discovery of the Mississippi River" (1904),"The Flower of Destiny" (1905", "The Lever: A Novel" (1911), " The Madonna of Sacrifice : A Story of Florence" (1913), "The Congregationalist and the Christian World" (1914) "The Bachelors" (1915), "In Quest of the Perfect Book: Reminiscences and Reflections of a Bookman" (1926), "Mary Baker Eddy and Her Books" (1950) and many others. William Dana Orcutt died after an extended illness on 28 November, 1953 at his home in Boston. He was survived by his wife, the former Louise (or) Lois) Thompson, whom he married in 1896 and two sons, Reginald Wilson Orcutt (1894-1965) and Philip Dana Orcutt (1901-1979). Reginald, in his youth, had explored the Canadian wilderness and at one time helped Charles A. Lindbergh plan an expedition there. Reginald's wife, Penelope, was the daughter of Canadian writer Basil King. Philip was an architect who served with the US Army Air Force during the Second World War.

Source: 1870, 1880 US Census Records, US Passport Application, 19 March, 1903, New York Times, 18 November, 1942, The Times Record, 30 April 1947, Newport Mercury and Weekly News, 4 December, 1953, Social Security Death Index, The Dana Family in America.
- IMDb mini biography by: John F. Barlow