Lederstrumpfbrunnen Lederstrumpfbrunnen The Lederstrumpfbrunnen (literally: "leatherstocking fountain") is a fountain in the German city of Edenkoben. It commemorates the frontiersman Johann Adam Hartmann (1748-1836), who was born in this city and considered by some as a possible inspiration for the character Natty Bumppo of the Leatherstocking Tales novels by the American writer James Fenimore Cooper. The three main sculptures around the fountain are Hartman/Bumppo depicted as a hunter with a rifle and accompanied by a dog, the Indian chief Chingachgook (another famous character from the novels) and the artist Max Slevogt (1868-1932), who created some of the best known illustrations for
James Fenimore Cooper was virulent in its comments about him, and Cooper filed legal actions for libel, winning all his lawsuits. After concluding his last case in court, Cooper returned to writing with more energy and success than he'd had for several years. On May 10, 1839, he published his "History of the U.S. Navy", and returned to the "Leatherstocking Tales" series with "The Pathfinder, or The Inland Sea" (1840) and "The Deerslayer" (1841) and other novels. He wrote again on maritime themes, including "Ned Myers, or A Life Before the Mast", which is of particular interest to naval historians. In the late