Customer Reviews

Uncle: My Journey with John Purdue

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This is a wonderful story of a fascinating man of tremendous vision and moral conscience. Born just over 200 years ago in a log cabin, his personal story is an inspirational one as told by his great-great grandniece. It paints a vivid picture of the rise of John Purdue to become one of the most influential Americans of his time. In his busy and fulfilling life, he involved himself in most major facets of the development of America during the 19th century. Whether you have an interest in farming or business, education or philanthropy, entrepreneurship or family.....his story will touch most everyone.

I was fortunate enough to first read "Uncle" as a work in progress. It is a very compelling book on a number of levels, and I believe that most serious readers will find it fascinating, even if they have little interest in or knowledge of John Purdue.

First of all, Ms Scott's journey is very personal--she had evidence in family documents and photos that Purdue was not entirely the steely, remote character depicted in other histories, and she set out to correct the record. In doing so, she wanted to personally feel Purdue's presence, so she visited the major centers of Purdue's life and talked to residents and historians in those places. What develops is a surprisingly evocative sense of an early American life that preceded the explosive growth of the industrial age.

Second, it's a sometimes poignant story of a young man becoming an American, shaped by immigrant roots, religion, family responsibilities, and the forces of culture. These factors combined with an innate intelligence, astounding ambition, and a reverence for learning to form one of the most influential capitalists in American history and the eventual founder of Purdue University.

Thirdly, "Uncle" is a wonderful portrait of a group of powerful landowners and railroad tycoons who propelled the nation westward. Purdue was one of them, and while they clashed and quarreled and amassed huge fortunes, they also built a country.

Ms. Scott is a fitting teller of this tale. She is a Ph. D., former university professor, and a naturalist. John Purdue would have been very proud of her.

In Uncle, My Journey with John Purdue, Irena Scott has given us a well-written and well-researched historical biography of an important figure in middle Nineteenth Century America. Her McCammon family's obvious respect and admiration for "Uncle" John Purdue apparently motivated them to keep many records pertaining to his life and work. Proving that it can be a good thing for families to preserve old records and documents, the author has drawn heavily on these materials to present an intimate and in-depth portrait of her subject. We see John Purdue not only as a successful businessman and the founder of Purdue University, but as a man who also kept in close touch with his relatives and friends. In this biography we come to know him as a person who cared about those nearest to him and who generously shared his success and knowledge with them. I believe Uncle is the definitive story of John Purdue, his life and accomplishments. As one who had a chance to preview a small part of Irena Scott's work early on, I must say I was delighted with the finished product and the picture it gives of the life and times of one man and his part in the growth of our country.