“Writing
is not the easiest way to make a living. You work long hours, usually all by
yourself. It is not a way to make
money.” – Stephen Ambrose
Born in Illinois on this date in
1938, Ambrose was one of the 20th Century’s giants in both the
teaching of history – which he famously said “is everything that has ever
happened” – and his popular writing about history.
A graduate of the University of
Wisconsin, where he originally aspired to a career in medicine, he turned to
history instead after hearing the first lecture in a U.S. history class
entitled "Representative Americans" from William B. Hesseltine. Ambrose credited Hesseltine with
fundamentally shaping his writing and igniting his interest in the field.
A distinguished professor of history
for 30 years, Ambrose wrote what arguably are among the most popular history books
– many also made into movie or television series. Among them were Crazy Horse and Custer: Band
of Brothers (about the U.S. Army’s famed Easy Company); and D-Day, June 6, 1944 (all 3 with much
longer “formal” titles). His most
popular single work was Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas
Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West, which stayed on the New
York Times best seller list for 126 weeks. 
In addition to 27 self-authored
books, Ambrose co-authored, edited, and contributed to many more. He also was a frequent contributor to
magazines such as American Heritage right up until his death in 2002,
continuing his impact as a “writer of popular history.” U.S Senator and Presidential candidate George
McGovern, the primary focus of Ambrose's book Wild Blue said, "He
probably reached more readers than any other historian in our national
history."
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