This latest online release adds 25 diverse entries to the ANB, with lives spanning over 200 years of American history. We see an early observer of the newly independent United States in Pavel Svin’in, while the biography of Aspasia Mirault reveals an enterprising free woman of color in antebellum America fighting a system designed to work against her. The system would be changed radically by the Civil War, in which Franklin Archibald Dick and Francis M. Wafer were active participants, who left letters, diaries and memoirs recording their experiences. We see two rather different wartime lives, less than a century later, with Earl M. Finch turning his attention to the welfare and comfort of the Japanese-American troops, and Philip Johnston working on the Navajo code-talker system for the transmission of classified wartime information. Battles of another kind took place in McCarthy-era America, and undercover informant Herbert Philbrick was lauded as a hero for his part in the conviction of twelve leading Communists. One of the last Americans to be arrested under the Smith Act, Anne Burlak Timpson was to have all charges dropped, and Donna Allen moved on from her experiences before the House Committee on Un-American Activities to become a powerful spokeswoman for media democracy. At a time when many were left disillusioned by recent ideological struggles, Hunter S. Thompson began charting the evolution of the American dream, pioneering, as he did so, the “gonzo” journalism that has shaped modern reportage.

1. Adams, Joey (6 Jan. 1911-2 Dec. 1999), Comedians
2. Allen, Donna (19 Aug. 1920-19 July 1999), Civil Rights Activists
3. Appling, Luke (2 Apr. 1907-3 Jan. 1991), Baseball Players
4. Baskin, Burt (17 Dec. 1913-24 Dec. 1967), Entrepreneurs
5. Butts, Alfred Mosher (13 Apr. 1899-4 Apr. 1993), Game and Toy Manufacturers
6. Dick, Franklin Archibald (2 May 1823-18 Feb. 1885), Lawyers
7. Dickson, Earle (10 Oct. 1892-21 Sept. 1961), Inventors
8. Falwell, Jerry (11 Aug. 1933-15 May 2007), Religious Broadcasters, Evangelists
9. Finch, Earl M. (15 Dec. 1915-25 Aug. 1965), Philanthropists
10. Johnson, Sarah (29 Sept. 1844-25 Jan. 1920), Slaves
11. Johnston, Philip (14 Sept. 1892-11 Sept. 1978), Intelligence Operatives / Officials
12. Kelly, William Russell (21 Nov. 1905-3 Jan. 1998), Entrepreneurs
13. Kirk, Grayson (12 Oct. 1903-21 Nov. 1997), Educational Institution Officials
14. Mas Canosa, Jorge (21 Sept. 1939-23 Nov. 1997), Political Activists
15. McGee, Thomas D'Arcy (13 Apr. 1825-7 Apr. 1868), Print Journalists
16. Mirault, Aspasia Cruvellier (1800-13 Nov. 1857), Entrepreneurs
17. Morton, Joy (27 Sept. 1855-10 May 1934), Salt Industry Leaders
18. Philbrick, Herbert A. (11 May 1915-16 Aug. 1993), Informants
19. Svin'in, Pavel Petrovich (8 June 1787- Apr. 1839), Print Journalists, Diplomats
20. Terry, Paul (19 Feb. 1887-25 Oct. 1971), Film Animators
21. Thompson, Hunter S. (18 July 1937-20 Feb. 2005), Print Journalists
22. Timpson, Anne Burlak (24 May 1911-9 July 2002), Labor Organizers / Leaders
23. Tiny Tim (12 Apr. 1932-30 Nov. 1996), Popular Singers
24. Unanue, Prudencio (6 Apr. 1886-17 Mar. 1976), Food Business Leaders
25. Wafer, Francis Moses (31 July 1830-7 Apr. 1876), Autobiographers / Memoirists