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Since there's not a whole lot of information about the author of our current book in the free-and-clear webspace (that is, not hidden behind a wall of dollar signs), that means I have to be a bit more clever. Starting with this snippet of genealogy from the Daughters of the American Revolution Lineage Book (1897):

MISS NANNIE B. WINSTON
-- National DAR membership #1797
Born in Virginia

  • Descendant of Lieut. James Meriwether and William Bobby Winston, of Virginia.
  • Daughter of James Blair Winston and Julia A. Lumpkin, his wife.
  • Granddaughter of James Meriwether Winston and Mary Ann Hemingway, his wife.
  • Great-granddaughter of William Bobby Winston and Ann Meriwether, his wife.
  • Great-great-granddaughter of James Meriwether and Elizabeth Pollard, his wife.
  • James Meriwether was one of four brothers in the Continental service. He rose to the rank of lieutenant and served through the war.
  • William Bobby Winston was a soldier from 1778 to the close of the Revolution.
We've established this Miss Winston was a member of the Old Dominion DAR chapter, and (as I just found out) "our" Miss Winston later followed up this book's success (which tells us that somebody responded to the book back in the day, even if I don't now) with The Grace of Orders (1902), which a contemporary review tells us is set in "Virginia as it was before the great cataclysm, and as it is now," which has to be more than a coincidence. You'll also notice that the Times didn't make the "Mr. Winston" mistake twice.

Keep in mind that all of the above is strictly circumstantial evidence, and considering some of the things I've said about the book so far, I post this information with a great deal of trepidation in case the author's estate puts a hit out on me. Still, it might be interesting to put a life to the name on the title page. Consider this a combination action item/plea for mercy.

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