Fitz-James O’Brien

(1826/8-1862)

Fitz-James O’Brien (1826/8-1862) was born in Co. Cork, Ireland, and spent his teenage years in Limerick after his mother remarried. Early in life, he published poetry, but soon turned to short fiction, the mode defining his legacy. At twenty-one, he inherited family wealth and moved to London in 1849, where he honed his craft. After squandering his inheritance in three years, he emigrated to America in 1852. There, O’Brien flourished as a writer, following Edgar Allan Poe’s influence. He enlisted in the Union Army during the Civil War and died in 1862 after being wounded in battle.

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