Horatio Alger, Jr.

Horatio Alger Jr. (1832–1899) was an American author whose name became shorthand for the rags-to-riches story. A Harvard-educated former minister, he wrote well over a hundred books for young readers, most following poor boys who rise to respectability through honesty, perseverance, and a measure of luck. Titles such as Ragged Dick made him one of the most widely read authors of nineteenth-century America.