James Fenimore Cooper was inspired by a tale related to him by neighbor and family friend John Jay. It was more successful and became a bestseller; the setting of this Revolutionary War tale is widely believed to have been John Jay's family home "The Locusts" in Rye, New York. In 1823, Cooper published "The Pioneers", the first of the "Leatherstocking" series. The series features Natty Bumppo, a resourceful American woodsman at home with the Delaware Indians and their chief Chingachgook. Bumppo was also the main character of Cooper's most famous novel "The Last of the Mohicans" (1826), written in New York City where
Paul Fenimore Cooper Paul Fenimore Cooper Paul Fenimore Cooper (September 15, 1899 – January 20, 1970) was an American writer of children's books and non-fiction, some based on his travels. His first book was a translation of Albanian folk tales. Paul Fenimore Cooper was born in Albany, New York, in 1899, the son of James Fenimore Cooper (1858–1938) and Susan Linn (Sage) Cooper (1866–1933). Her brother Henry M. Sage (1868–1933) became a state senator. Paul was a great-grandson of the novelist James Fenimore Cooper (1789–1851) and a great-great-grandson of William Cooper (1754–1809), the founder of Cooperstown, New York. He was also distantly related