Ward Moore
Ward Moore was an American author born on August 10, 1903, in Madison, New Jersey. He lived a diverse life, initially working as a chicken farmer and bookshop clerk before becoming a shipyard worker during World War II, where he contributed to building Liberty Ships. After the war, he transitioned to homebuilding and nurtured his growing interest in writing, supporting his family through ghostwriting and editing book reviews. Moore is best known for his post-apocalyptic works, particularly "Lot," which explores themes of survival. However, his literary legacy is primarily anchored in his acclaimed novel "Bring the Jubilee," regarded as one of the first alternate history novels. In this story, the Confederacy wins the Civil War, leading to a dramatically altered America, where the protagonist's journey through time raises profound questions about determinism and free will. Ward Moore's work has influenced many writers and sparked significant discussions about historical possibilities. He passed away on January 29, 1978, in California.
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Subject Terms
Ward Moore
Author
- Born: August 10, 1903
- Birthplace: Madison, New Jersey
- Died: January 29, 1978
- Place of death: California
Biography
Ward Moore was born on August 10, 1903, in Madison, New Jersey, and was largely self-educated. He worked as a chicken farmer and bookshop clerk until World War II, during which time he became a shipyard worker, building the Liberty Ships that helped to win the war. During the war, he married Lorna Lenzi, but subsequently divorced her and married Raylyn Crabbe in 1967. He had four daughters and three sons.
After the war he became a homebuilder, and became more interested in writing. In order to support himself and his family as a writer, he began ghostwriting and editing book reviews to bring in extra money. He wrote several postapocalyptic works, including Greener than You Think and “Lot,” a story of a man obsessed with survival. The title of the latter has multiple meanings, including the Biblical figure who survived the fall of Sodom and Gomorrah, and the concept of one’s lot in life.
However, Moore’s literary reputation rests primarily on a single book, Bring the Jubilee, which was arguably the first alternate history. In it, Lee’s forces are successful at the Battle of Gettysburg and ultimately win the Civil War, or as they call it, the War of Southern Independence. In a reverse of actual history, the South becomes a wealthy powerhouse while the North declines as an impoverished backwater. However, the world Moore portrays is visibly less advanced than our own, and the protagonist has difficulty in obtaining the advanced training he seeks. In the climax, the protagonist travels backwards in time to test his historical theories and inadvertently leads to a Confederate loss, creating the world we know (or at least one very much like our own). Devastated by the realization that he has destroyed the world he knew, the protagonist dies a broken man. The book sparked extensive discussion of the nature of time and of determinism vs. free will, and led many other writers to explore the possibilities of worlds that might have been. Moore died on January 29, 1978, in California.