Waters E. Turpin
(1910 - 1968)
Occupation: Novelist; Educator
Place of Origin: Oxford, Maryland
About:
Waters Turpin wore many hats, some of which being an educator, coach and even playwright, but most of all, he was a literary genius and is remembered as such. Turpin published a total of three novels in his lifetime:
These Low Grounds- Waters Turpin tells the story of a family through four generations. The novel begins with Martha, a freed enslaved woman turned housemaid, and ends with Jimmy, her great grandson who after pursuing his career as an athlete, returns to his hometown in Maryland as a teacher to “improve the lives of his fellow men”.
O Canaan!- This Novel documents the inner challenges and social conflicts that burdened Black Americans as they took part in the Great Migration.
The Rootless- Tells the uncensored story of the treatment of the enslaved in eighteenth-century Maryland. It is believed that this, along with his other writings with a focus on slavery, was inspired by the stories told to him by his grandfather, Captain Jack Waters.
Each novel, although fictitious in its storytelling, provides the reader with an accurate and groundbreaking perspective of history and life through the eyes of Black Americans.
Resources:
https://www.watersedgemuseum.org/east-wall-manuscripts-and-literature
https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803110315860
https://www.vintagebooksmd.com/pages/books/12952/waters-edward-turpin/o-canaan?soldItem=true