David Shipman
Encyclopedia
David Shipman is generally considered to be the real-life inspiration for James Fenimore Cooper
's character Natty Bumppo in the Leatherstocking Tales
along with a pioneer man named Thomas Leffingwell. When Cooper's father Judge William Cooper
settled in what is now Otsego County, New York
in the mid 1780s, Shipman lived alone in a small cabin in the hills south of the village of Cooperstown
, a squatter on the land of Cooper's neighbor John Christopher Hartwick
.
Shipman was a veteran of the American Revolution
and had a reputation locally as an expert hunter and fisherman. During the author's youth, Shipman would often appear at the Cooper home, Otsego Hall, to offer the family some of his latest products. Susan Fenimore Cooper
wrote that "rude equipments, dogs, and rifle, had much attraction for the lads of the house". James Cooper referred to Shipman in his Chronicles of Cooperstown as "the 'Leather Stocking' of the region, ... could at almost any time, furnish the table with a saddle of venison".
James Fenimore Cooper
James Fenimore Cooper was a prolific and popular American writer of the early 19th century. He is best remembered as a novelist who wrote numerous sea-stories and the historical novels known as the Leatherstocking Tales, featuring frontiersman Natty Bumppo...
's character Natty Bumppo in the Leatherstocking Tales
Leatherstocking Tales
The Leatherstocking Tales is a series of novels by American writer James Fenimore Cooper, each featuring the main hero Natty Bumppo, known by European settlers as "Leatherstocking," 'The Pathfinder", and "the trapper" and by the Native Americans as "Deerslayer," "La Longue Carabine" and...
along with a pioneer man named Thomas Leffingwell. When Cooper's father Judge William Cooper
William Cooper (judge)
William Cooper was the founder of Cooperstown, New York and father of writer James Fenimore Cooper, who apparently used his father as the pattern for the Judge Marmaduke Temple character in his book The Pioneers....
settled in what is now Otsego County, New York
Otsego County, New York
Otsego County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. The 2010 population was 62,259. The county seat is Cooperstown. The name Otsego is from a Mohawk word meaning "place of the rock."-History:...
in the mid 1780s, Shipman lived alone in a small cabin in the hills south of the village of Cooperstown
Cooperstown, New York
Cooperstown is a village in Otsego County, New York, USA. It is located in the Town of Otsego. The population was estimated to be 1,852 at the 2010 census.The Village of Cooperstown is the county seat of Otsego County, New York...
, a squatter on the land of Cooper's neighbor John Christopher Hartwick
John Christopher Hartwick
John Christopher Hartwick was a Lutheran minister in Colonial America and founder of Hartwick College.-Background:Hartwick was a native of the dukedom of Saxe-Gotha in the province of Thuringia in...
.
Shipman was a veteran of the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
and had a reputation locally as an expert hunter and fisherman. During the author's youth, Shipman would often appear at the Cooper home, Otsego Hall, to offer the family some of his latest products. Susan Fenimore Cooper
Susan Fenimore Cooper
Susan Augusta Fenimore Cooper was an American writer and amateur naturalist. She was born in Scarsdale, New York, the daughter of the well known novelist James Fenimore Cooper. She was his second child, and the eldest to survive her youth...
wrote that "rude equipments, dogs, and rifle, had much attraction for the lads of the house". James Cooper referred to Shipman in his Chronicles of Cooperstown as "the 'Leather Stocking' of the region, ... could at almost any time, furnish the table with a saddle of venison".