January 10 Wednesday – At 21 Fifth Ave., N.Y. Sam wrote to unidentified gentlemen.
January 9 Tuesday – Sam began a series of Autobiographical Dictations (hereinafter referred to as A.D.) for Albert Bigelow Paine. Paine brought Miss Josephine Hobby, a part- time stenographer, employed by Century Magazine for many years (she would be fired in Sept. 1908 by Isabel Lyon). Miss Hobby had also worked for Charles Dudley Warner and Mary Mapes Dodge [MTB 1266]. The dictations continued with fair regularity throughout 1906 and 7, thereafter intermittently. The last recorded dictation was on Dec. 29, 1909 [MTHHR 607n1]. Note: MTHHR 607n1 uses Jan.
January 8–February 12 – Sometime during this period, Sam wrote to the Robert Fulton Memorial Association, a letter which ran in the Feb. 18 issue, p. 20 of the NY Times:
January 8 Monday – At 21 Fifth Ave., N.Y. Sam wrote to Thomas S. Barbour resigning from the Congo Reform Assoc.
I have retired from the Congo.
January 7 Sunday – Isabel Lyon’s journal:
January 6 Saturday – Clara Clemens continued to suffer a throat affliction. On this day she returned to the Norfolk sanitarium; she would return on Jan. 9, then go to Atlantic City [IVL TS 4; Hill 121].
Albert Bigelow Paine called on Sam at 21 Fifth Ave., N.Y. about the possibility of writing Mark Twain’s biography. Paine writes of the meeting:
January 5 Friday – At 21 Fifth Ave., N.Y. Sam wrote to Herbert Gunnison (1858-1932), publisher of the Brooklyn Eagle, declining an invitation (not extant) [Christie’s auction 24 May 2002, Lot 1, Sale 1083]. Note: Gunnison was an “avid collector who sought to obtain material from a variety of 19 century personalities in the political, military, religious and cultural spectrums. The collection contains approximately 2000 items” [Ibid].
January 4 Thursday – Isabel Lyon’s journal:
Today young Mr. [Horace] Ashton came and made 8 photographs of Mr. Clemens in his bed. Not very good.
January 3 Wednesday – At 21 Fifth Ave., N.Y. Sam wrote to William D’Alton Mann.
I supposed its intent was malicious, but if Fiske wrote it it wasn’t. I went to the Court for a very definite purpose; but as I have not spoken to any one about it, no one knows what it was but myself.
January 2 Tuesday – Isabel Lyon’s journal:
Subscribe to
© 2026 Twain's Geography, All rights reserved.