John Steinbeck

AKA:

A Giant of American Letters

Birth Name:

John Ernst Steinbeck III

Birth Date:

February 27, 1902

Birth Place:

Salinas, California

Death Date:

December 20, 1968

Place of Death:

190 East 72nd Street, New York City

Age:

Cause of Death:

Heart disease and congestive heart failure

Cemetery Name:

Garden of Memories Cemetery

Claim to Fame:

Writers and Poets

John Steinbeck was an American author born on February 27, 1902, in Salinas, California. Known for his keen social perception and deep empathy for the working class, Steinbeck wrote with a powerful sense of realism and compassion. His most celebrated works include The Grapes of Wrath, Of Mice and Men, and East of Eden, novels that often explore themes of economic hardship, human dignity, and the American Dream. Many of his stories are set in California and reflect the struggles of farmers, laborers, and outcasts during the Great Depression. Steinbeck's writing style combined lyrical prose with a journalistic eye for detail, making his work both emotionally resonant and socially conscious. He won the Pulitzer Prize for The Grapes of Wrath in 1940 and was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1962.

Fun Facts:

Steinbeck served as a war correspondent for the New York Herald Tribune during World War II.

His dog, Toby, famously ate half of the first draft of “Of Mice and Men”.

Over the course of 276 days in 1952, Steinbeck wrote the first draft of East of Eden, a book he considered his ultimate test as a writer.

Travels with Charley: In Search of America is a travelogue of his 1960 road trip with his poodle Charley. Steinbeck bemoans his lost youth and roots, while dispensing both criticism and praise for the United States. According to Steinbeck’s son Thom, Steinbeck made the journey because he knew he was dying and wanted to see the country one last time.

In 1962, Steinbeck won the Nobel Prize for literature for his “realistic and imaginative writing, combining as it does sympathetic humor and keen social perception”. The selection was heavily criticized, and described as “one of the Academy’s biggest mistakes” in one Swedish newspaper. Fifty years later, in 2012, the Nobel Prize opened its archives and it was revealed that Steinbeck was a “compromise choice” among a shortlist consisting of Steinbeck, British authors Robert Graves and Lawrence Durrell, French dramatist Jean Anouilh and Danish author Karen Blixen. The declassified documents showed that he was chosen as the best of a bad lot.

Cemetery Information:

Final Resting Place:

Garden of Memories Cemetery

850 Abbott Street

Salinas, California, 93901

USA

North America

Map:

Garden of Memories Cemetery in Salinas, California

Grave Location:

Section 1, Block N-5

Grave Location Description

From the Abbott Street entrance drive straight ahead on the Main Road and stop at the “Sorenson” monument on your right. Walk half half-way into Section 1 on your right for the final resting of one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century – John Steinbeck.