Clarence Hawkes

Illustration by Charles Copeland for Clarence Hawkes' Black Bruin (1908)

Clarence Hawkes (December 16, 1869 – January 19, 1954) was an American author and lecturer, known for his nature stories and poetry. Born in Goshen, Massachusetts, Hawkes was physically disabled at a young age; part of one leg was amputated when he was nine, and he became blind four years later after a gun discharged in his face during a hunting accident. He was subsequently schooled at the Perkins School for the Blind in Boston, where he befriended the young Helen Keller. In 1899, he married Bessie Bell, who illustrated his first book, and the couple moved to Hadley. His prolific career saw the publication of over 100 volumes on a variety of topics; upon his death, the New York Times referred to him as the "blind poet of Hadley".

In 2009, English professor James A. Freeman published the book Clarence Hawkes: America's Blind Naturalist and the World He Lived In in celebration of Hadley's 350th year.

Selected list of works

• Pebbles and Shells: Verses (1895)
• Shaggycoat: The Biography of a Beaver (1906)
• Black Bruin: The Biography of a Bear (1908)
• Piebald, King of Bronchos: The Biography of a Wild Horse (1912)
• Bing: The Story of a Small Dog's Love (1920)

References

• "Fiction: Jungle Joe". Time Magazine. April 19, 1926. Retrieved on April 28, 2010.

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Name	Hawkes, Clarence
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Date of birth	December 16, 1869
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Date of death	January 19, 1954
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