George Wharton James

George Wharton James was an American popular lecturer, photographer, journalist, and editor. Born in Lincolnshire, England, he immigrated to the United States as a young man after becoming ordained as a Methodist minister. He worked in parishes throughout Nevada and Southern California, gradually launching his journalism and writing careers. He edited two periodicals and wrote over 40 books, as well as numerous essays and booklets about California and the American Southwest. George Wharton...See more

George Wharton James was an American popular lecturer, photographer, journalist, and editor. Born in Lincolnshire, England, he immigrated to the United States as a young man after becoming ordained as a Methodist minister. He worked in parishes throughout Nevada and Southern California, gradually launching his journalism and writing careers. He edited two periodicals and wrote over 40 books, as well as numerous essays and booklets about California and the American Southwest. George Wharton James was born in Lincoln, England. He married and was ordained as a Methodist minister. He and his wife moved to the United States in 1881. He served parishes in Nevada and southern California. However, in 1889, his wife filed for divorce, accusing him of multiple acts of adultery. The Methodist Church tried him on charges of real estate fraud, using bogus credentials, and sexual misconduct. He was defrocked, but was later reinstated. James had a longstanding battle with Charles Fletcher Lummis, a California writer with comparable geographical interests. Both men traveled the American Southwest and met Father Anton Docher, a French-born missionary priest who spent 34 years among the Pueblo of Isleta in New Mexico. See less