MacKinlay Kantor was born in Webster City in 1904. His mother, Effie McKinlay Kantor, was the editor of the Webster City Daily News during part of his school days. His father, John Kanto, deserted the family before he was born. This was a tragedy that marred his early life. Mack, his sister Virginia, and his mother all moved in with his grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Adam McKinlay, who lived at 1712 Willson Avenue.

Early in his life, MacKinlay decided to change the spelling of his name by adding the extra "a" in the "Mc" because he thought it sounded more Scottish. He was later called simply "Mack." Mack attended school in Webster City graduating from Lincoln High School in 1923. While a high school student, Mack started writing articles in his mother's newspaper. He entered a writing contest while in 10th grade with a short story /Purple./ using a pseudonym. His entry won first prize. Thus started his writing career.

Kantor stated that "he did not attend college, but Kendall Young Library was his university from the day it opened" when he was a small boy. Librarian Charlotte Crosley encouraged him in his pursuit of knowledge. His special interest was the Civil War. He spent hours sitting and listening to the Civil War veterans. This led him to write his novel, Andersonville, for which he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1956. His novel Glory for Me was made into the Academy Award winning movie "The Best Years of Our Lives" in 1948.

His best writings were his historical novels. Many novels relate to Webster City and the people that he knew from here. At a book signing that was held at the Elks Club building, I asked him which of his books he considered his finest work. He stated that of course the "Big A," or Andersonville, brought him the most fame and money, his whole life was put into his 1961 novel Spirit Lake.

Kantor wrote a book For God and Country about his experiences as a boy scout. This book was dedicated to his scoutmaster, Murray McMurray. The film had its opening night in Webster City in 1965.

Kantor died in 1977 in Sarasota, Florida. In all he has written over 40 books, all of which were carefully preserved by his best friend, Richard Whiteman, who gave his entire collection to Kendall Young Library at the time he donated over $1,000,000 dollars for the library expansion.

In 1976, Kantor and Clark R. Mollenhoff were honored by the naming of the Kantor-Mollenhoff Plaza in West Twin Park. This was a part of our Bicentennial celebration. Both men were present for the unveiling.

In 1989, the city named two streets for these famous authors. MacKinlay Kantor Drive was located at the west edge of the city, Clark R. Mollenhoff Drive was located at the east edge. Mayor Vic Hisler commented at the time that these two streets serve as the bookmarks of our city.