Lyman Draper

Who was Lyman Draper?

Lyman Copeland Draper, was a librarian and historian who served as secretary for the Wisconsin Historical Society at Madison, Wisconsin. Draper also served as Superintendent of Public Instruction of Wisconsin 1858-1860.

Draper was born in Lockport, New York, and was a descendant of early Massachusetts settler James Draper. Starting in the 1830s, Lyman Draper corresponded with people who were early settlers in the Trans-Allegheny region during the second half of the 18th century. He planned on writing a series of biographies on early settlers in the region and document the Indian Wars that occurred in the Ohio River Valley. He also traveled extensively in the region to gain a better feel for the territory in question. His correspondence with various survivors of the time and their close relatives provide the largest single first-hand account of the settlement of the region.

Lyman Draper never finished his biographies, although he did publish 10 volumes of historical notes for the Wisconsin Historical Society as well as a volume about the Battle of King's Mountain, which featured many of the people who were also early settlers. Draper's professed purpose was to shed light on the era and gain knowledge before they became completely forgotten.