A Gentleman of Much Promise, Volumes 1 and 2: The Diary of Isaac Mickle, 1837-1845

Isaac Mickle was no ordinary youth, and it follows that his diary is no ordinary scribbling. A Gentleman of Much Promise is the eloquent and insightful account of a young man entering the prime of his life.

Born of a wealthy New Jersey family, Mickle was in his short lifetime (1822-1855) a Camden and Philadelphia lawyer, the editor of two weekly newspapers, an historian, an accomplished violinist and avid book collector, a local political leader, something of a ladies’ man, and a keen observer of his society and times. By the age of twenty-two Miclke had immersed himself in politics, and his activities provide a view not only into day-to-day local affairs but also into the Democratic National Convention of 1844. He relates meetings with many prominent figures of his day, including Presidents Van Buren, Tyler, and Polk and writers Orestes Brownson and Ralph Waldo Emerson.

A Gentleman of Much Promise is at once a private and a public history. The details of this yoing man’s life-from his modes of travel to his courting habits-draw the reader into intimate contact with Jacksonian America. His comments on current events and his accounts of trips to Washington, Baltimore, New York, New Haven, Boston, and other cities provide a fascinating portrait of the United States during one it its most vibrant decades.