Joe Lincoln of Cape Cod

Joe Lincoln of Cape Cod by James Westaway McCue is a biographical and literary portrait written in the mid-20th century. The book explores the life, work, and popular appeal of novelist Joseph C. Lincoln, using the people, traditions, and landscape of Cape Cod as its constant frame.

The book traces Lincoln’s upbringing in Brewster among generations of sea captains, his boyhood roaming the Cape, and his detour through bookkeeping and art before discovering his voice in verse and fiction about “Cape Cod Folks.” It follows his breakthrough with Cape Cod Ballads and Cap’n Eri, his steady stream of amiable, humorous village novels and plays, and his deliberate choice to celebrate decency and cheer rather than sordid “problem” fiction. McCue highlights Lincoln’s work habits (pencil drafts in morning sessions), his insistence on types rather than exact portraits, and his reflections on editors, serialization, and craft, captured in interviews (notably with Joyce Kilmer) and anecdotes about O. Henry. The narrative mixes literary appreciation with Cape lore—Yankee shrewdness tales, windmill-making, sea rescues—samples his poetry, and paints his Chatham home, hobbies, and friendships. It also covers collaborations with his son (including the War of 1812 adventure The New Hope), his lectures, stage and film adaptations, and his advocacy for preserving Cape Cod’s character. The closing chapters include his wartime salute to Chatham’s “Victory Market” and the community effort to memorialize him, rounding out a warm, engaging portrait of a writer who turned Cape Cod’s everyday life into enduring popular fiction.