A sample of Henry's signature taken from his military registration card, 1917.
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Please visit my Notable KNIBBS Page for Henry
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There is much information available to indicate that Henry Herbert Knibbs was born in Clifton (now called Niagara Falls), Ontario, Canada to affluent American parents. His biography record at Los Angeles Library as well as at Stanford University, California, states that his ancestors were Cornish tin miners, seamen and Long Island farmers.
It was his father who encouraged him to read the works of Longfellow, Lord Byron, Whittier, Tennyson, Edgar Allen Poe. His introduction to horses and livestock on his grandparents' farm in Pennsylvania stayed with him throughout his life and had a major influence on his writing. He developed a love for the violin at a very young age, and it was that love to which he turned his attentions later in life after the sudden end to his writing career.
He attended Woodstock College at age 14, then Bishop Ridley College for three years and studied English at Harvard. He moved to California in 1901 where he wrote his first Novel, Lost Farm Camp. Most of Henry's novels are set in the West and in revolutionary Mexico.
He is listed as a former student of Harvard studying literature, and living at that time at 711 Cole Avenue, Los Angeles, California, USA.
He wrote six books of poems:
First Poems, 1908;
Songs of the Outlands, Ballads of the Hoboes and Other Verse, 1914;
Riders of the Stars: A Book of Western Verse, 1916;
Songs of the Trail, 1920;
Saddle Songs and Other Verse, 1922;
Songs of the Lost Frontier, 1930.
He also authored 13 western novels and a series of articles printed in the Saturday Evening Post, Red Cross Magazine, Current Opinion, West, Western Stories and Adventures.
Henry Herbert Knibbs was a scholar who aspired to be a Western writer and poet. There is no doubt that he put a great deal of research and thought into his writing. He was not born into ranch life, but became a Western writer through his great efforts. As a result, he left a legacy of profound cowboy poetry for our pleasure. He spent his last few years as owner of a violin shop in Banning, California. Dispite efforts made by Turbesé Lummis, his biography, 'A Boy I Knew' (alternately titled, 'Ticket Of Leave Man'), remains unpublished.
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I am extremely pleased to have seen copies of several pages from a book called "Hitchcock's New and Complete Analysis of the Holy Bible" published in 1877 which belongs to Ken Close who is descended from Henry's great-uncle Charles Knibbs. It was passed to Ken by his grandmother Hilda Gladys Knibbs, but Ken has no idea as to how it came into her possession. Inside the front cover is written "Henry Herbert Knibbs, 513 North Arden Boulevard, Los Angeles". So we presume from this that the book once belonged to Henry Herbert. The book contains many entries of births , marriages, and deaths of individuals within the family.
We suspect that the Bible originally belonged in the family of Lizzie Adkins, but probably not to Lizzie herself as her name Lizzie Reader is crossed out, and replaced with Lizzie Adkins, her maiden name - maybe it was her second husband George James Knibbs who was the original owner.
Follow this link to see full details of these recordings:
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Amongst Henry Herbert's papers currently contained in the archives at Stanford University, California, there are the following letters which help to establish the links within this part of the family:
** Knibbs, Clyde E., 1938 (his 2nd cousin from Verona, Grundy, Illinois)
- Knibbs, Ida Julia (his wife)
- Knibbs, Olive (his sister)
- Knibbs, Sara (his mother)
- Most letters from 1945, and all from 1946 are to and from Turbesé Lummis Fiske, in her capacity as administratrix of Henry Knibbs' estate
** Note: The letter from Clyde E Knibbs to Henry Herbert was written in March 1938, and interestingly, to 513 Arden Boulevard, Los Angeles which is the address written in the front of the Bible mentioned above. Clyde told Henry that he was contemplating moving to California himself if he could get a job there to pay the bills. He also enquired as to the health of Henry's mother and sister, and reported to Henry that his own mother and sisters were well.
There is also a Death Mask of Henry Herbert Knibbs in the University archives.
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Henry's Militrary Registration document was completed on 12 September 1918, and shows that he was living at what looks like 711 Cole Ave., Los Angeles, California. He listed his wife Ida as his next of kin and gave her address as the same as his so she was clearluy still with him at that time. He gave his occupation as 'Author'. He was recorded as tall, medium height, grey eyes and brown hair.
See Henry's Military Registration Card from 1917__________
Henry can be seen at the 1920 census living at Antelope Township, Los Angeles, California:
Henry H KNIBBS Head 45 Canada Author - Fiction & Poetry
Ida J KNIBBS Wife 37 New York
