21 Authors Who Left Big Footprints Across Upstate New York

Upstate New York is known for the number of famous authors that have left a mark here.

Sure, there are dozens more who claim New York City as their home, but there is a galaxy of literary stars who have left an enormous footprint on our region, too. From classics to children's books to Pulitzer Prize winners to several books that have made it to the Hollywood screen, this is an amazing list. And it includes all eras, from old timers like Herman Melville to the "new kids on the literary block," like Lauren Groff.

From Albany's favorite author, William Kennedy, to the ":Keep of the Twilight Zone" Rod Serling, to the beloved children's writer who gave us "Charlotte's Web," and to some of the earliest American giants like Washington Irving and James Fennimore Cooper, this list covers 200 years of our country's literary DNA.

Each entry has a link where appropriate. These links will take you to authors' birthplaces, museums, graves, and important biographical sites. Among my favorites here are Edna St. Vincent Millay's hilltop estate in Austerlitz, and the famous octagonal writing cupola that Mark Twain used to fill out Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. These are certainly national literary landmarks, and all are in Upstate New York!

And look for some surprises, too. I mean, who knew that F. Scott Fitzgerald lived in so many places in Upstate New York?