AUGUST DERLETH DAY PROCLAMATION

WHEREAS, the State of Wisconsin recognizes the value that authors and publishers bring to the quality and enrichment of life in Wisconsin and the nation; and

WHEREAS, August W. Derleth, a Wisconsin author born on February 24, 1909 in Sauk City, brought honor and distinction to himself, his community and his state during a lifetime spent in writing and publishing; and

WHEREAS, Derleth was educated in Sauk City beginning a writing career at age thirteen, publishing his first story in 1926; and

WHEREAS, he entered the University of Wisconsin where he continued writing, and graduated in 1930, after which he was briefly employed in an editorial position out-of-state; and

WHEREAS, returning to Sauk City in 1931, Derleth embarked on a writing career leading to a contract with Charles Scribner’s Sons, the publication of the first of his “Sac Prairie” novels depicting the historical evolution of Sauk City and Prairie du Sac; the awarding of a Guggenhein Fellowship in 1938, and the ultimate publication of over 150 books ranging from history, historical novels, biography, poetry, contemporary novels, juvenilia, supernatural fiction and pastiches, marking him as the most prolific writer in Wisconsin history, and

WHEREAS, Derleth founded Arkham House: Publishers in 1939, devoted to the works of H. P. Lovecraft and other writers of the macabre, and the associated imprints Mycroft & Moran and Stanton & Lee, achieving lasting world-wide recognition for these publishing efforts and later edited and published Hawk and Whippoorwill, a magazine of poetry; and

WHEREAS, in 1941, Derleth was appointed literary editor of the Capital Times of Madison, a position he held until 1960, and

WHEREAS, Derleth died in 1971 at age 62, leaving behind two children, April Rose and Walden William and the many lives he touched through his works; and

WHEREAS, Derleth took continued pride in his Wisconsin roots as evidenced by his writings, his activities in lecturing on American Regional Literature and his Journals exploring the delights of rural Wisconsin,

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Jim Doyle, Governor of Wisconsin, do hereby proclaim February 24, 2009, the hundredth anniversary of August Derleth’s birth, as

AUGUST DERLETH DAY

in Wisconsin and join the August Derleth Society in celebrating the life of a native son.

IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Great Seal of the State of Wisconsin to be affixed. Done at the Capitol in the City of Madison this _____ day of _____ in the year two thousand nine.

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JIM DOYLE

By the Governor:

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DOUGLAS LA FOLLETTE

Secretary of State