Herman James Whitaker (January 14, 1867 – January 20, 1919), known as Jim to his friends, was an English-born writer. Whitaker authored more than two hundred short stories and several books.
Early life
Whitaker was born on January 14, 1867, in Huddersfield, England. His father was John Whitaker (1821-1883), a successful wool merchant, and his mother was Annie Walton (1834-1921). He had two years of college at Crossley's School at Halifax, West Yorkshire.
Career
At 16, Whitaker joined the British Army and served for 3 years with the 2nd Battalion West Riding Artillery. When he left the army in 1886, he immigrated to Canada and worked for the Hudson's Bay Company. He married Margaret A Vandecar (1868-1905) on March 21, 1888, in Oxford County, Ontario. They had seven children during their marriage. In the 1880s, Whitaker and his wife Margaret had a farm near Russell, Manitoba. In 1895, Whitaker moved to Oakland, California. His book,The Settler (1906), is a story about a man determined to build a railway to link to the Canadian Pacific Railway.
Whitaker moved to California during the Panic of 1893. To help support his family he dug ditches, built barns, and worked for $12 (equivalent to $464 in 2025) a-week as a grocery store clerk in Oakland. At 35 years old, he started his writing career by submitting stories to the Overland Monthly and Harper's Magazine. These early stories made, at first, only $2.50 (equivalent to $97 in 2025) per story. They helped gain his acceptance into the Bay Area artist colony. He became friends with the Bohemian group including writers Joaquin Miller, Jack London, Austin Lewis, Bess London, George Sterling and Carrie Sterling. During this period, he became an activist for socialism.
