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Herman Melville (1819-1891) was born in New York City into an established merchant family. He was the third child of eight. His father, Allan Melvill, an importer of French dry goods, became bankrupt and insane, dying when Melville was 12. His mother, Maria Gansevoort Melvill, was left alone to raise eight children. Occasionally she received help from her wealthy relatives. A bout of scarlet fever in 1826 left Melville with permanently weakened eyesight. He attended Albany (N.Y.) Classical Schoo..
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