BANCROFT, HUBERT HOWE American historical writer, was born at Granville (0.), May 5, 1832. As a bookseller in San Francisco (1852-68) he accumulated a great library of historical material, and at last gave up business in order to devote himself to the publication of his Native Races of the Pacific States (5 vols., 1874-76), his many volumes on the western States, and other works. For the collection of data and for the writing in parts, he relied upon the labours of a corps of assistants, and the publications named represent, properly speaking, an encyclopaedia rather than a unified history; but as a storehouse of material their value is great. In 1905 Ban croft's vast collection was acquired by the University of Cali fornia. An account of his methods of work is given in his Liter ary Industries (1890) and Retrospection, Political and Personal (1912) . He died at Walnut Creek (Calif.), March 2, 1918.
See Oregon Historical Quarterly, vol. iv., pp. 287-364 for indentifica tion of Bancroft's literary assistants.