John Allan Carpenter was born in Waterloo, Iowa in 1917. Mr. Carpenter now lives in Chicago and “is one of the most respected non-fiction authors in American publishing history.” He is a prolific writer with more than 225 books to his credit. By 1990 his four “enchantment series” were approaching 10 million copies printed.

Among his accomplishments is the founding of the national magazine The Teachers Digest. At the age of 21, he was the director of public relations for Popular Mechanics, a position he held for 19 years. His writings are too many to mention in this article but here are just a few: author of the sixteen- volume Popular Mechanics Home Handyman Encyclopedia; fifty-two volume Enchantment of America state series; and his thirty-eight volume Enchantment of Africa series. His book: Illinois: Land of Lincoln, was the official book of the Illinois Sesquicentennial Celebration in 1968. In 1993 he co-authored World Almanac of the U.S.A.

“For more than twenty-five years, intermittently, he served as clerk of Session of the Second Presbyterian Church in Evanston, Illinois.” He has been a member of many non-professional symphony orchestras including the Chicago Business Men's Orchestra. He served as founder and president of the Music Council of Metropolitan Chicago. In 1988, Mr. Carpenter received a Life Achievement Award from the University of Northern Iowa. He served as president of the Society of Wilson Descendants for more than forty years. Mr. Carpenter is a Life Member of the Illinois St. Andrew society.

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