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Brad Holden
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Seattle Mystic Alfred M. Hubbard: Inventor, Bootlegger, & Psychedelic Pioneer Kindle Edition

by Brad Holden (Author), Don Lattin (Foreword) Format: Kindle Edition
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 23 ratings
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Seattle has a long tradition of being at the forefront of technological innovation. In 1919, a mysterious young inventor named Alfred M. Hubbard made his first newspaper appearance with the announcement of a perpetual motion machine that harnessed energy from Earth's atmosphere. From there, Hubbard transformed himself into a charlatan, bootlegger, radio pioneer, top-secret spy, millionaire and uranium entrepreneur. In the early 1950s, after discovering the transformative effects of a little-known hallucinogenic compound, Hubbard would go on to become the "Johnny Appleseed of LSD," paving the way for the very first generation of psychedelic disciples and beyond. Join author and historian Brad Holden as he chronicles the life of one of the most fascinating figures to emerge from Seattle's past.
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  1. Print length
    147 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Arcadia Publishing
  5. Publication date
    December 1, 2010
  6. File size
    2977 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is a captivating history of one of America's most colorful characters - Al Hubbard. Holden dives into the larger than life history of a man whose past intersects with rum running, spy rings, police informants, and psychedelics. Brilliantly told, Holden brings Hubbard's enigmatic character to life."
 -Erika Dyck Ph.D, Professor at the University of Saskatchewan, and author of Psychedelic Psychiatry: LSD from Clinic to Campus.

"An engaging biography about the mysterious Al Hubbard, who helped pioneer psychedelic therapy and is credited by Stan Grof with developing the model of the high dose inner-directed session to catalyze a mystical experience."
-Rick Doblin Ph.D., founder and executive director of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS)

"This is the remarkable story of Captain Al Hubbard-- inventor, con man, secret agent, uranium entrepreneur, and indefatigable LSD apostle, who saw the light while high on psychedelics in the early 1950s and never looked back."
- Martin A. Lee, author of Acid Dreams -- The Complete Social History of LSD: The CIA, the Sixties, and Beyond

"When Brad Holden first stumbled on 'Captain' Al Hubbard a few years ago, he found a crafty, Seattle rum-runner who'd achieved national celebrity during Prohibition. But Holden soon discovered that Hubbard's second act--as one of the key, hidden figures behind the psychedelic revolution of the 1960's--would prove even more extraordinary. In this groundbreaking attempt to peel back the many layers of myth and mystery that surround Hubbard's early life as a boy genius, bootlegger and spy, Holden lays out the epic life of a uniquely American character, a trickster who danced across the national stage for almost a half century. Holden, a dogged archaeologist of urban artifact and lore, performs an invaluable service by pulling together this compellingly readable introduction to 'The Captain'--a man whose late-in-life dream to change the world with psychedelics is still reverberating through the culture today."
-Ken Dornstein, Emmy-winning producer of The Grateful Dead documentary, Long Strange Trip, and author of The Boy Who Fell Out of the Sky: A True Story.

"Through the wildly fascinating legend of Al Hubbard, Holden details a huckster, dreamer and iconoclast who prototyped the next generation of eccentric Seattle tech entrepreneur and lifestyle guru. But Holden is getting at so much more here: a place, a time, a mentality that has gotten us to where we are today."
-Thomas Kohnstamm, author of Lake City

About the Author

Brad Holden is an author, historian and finder of old things. When not searching for local historical artifacts, he enjoys writing about Seattle's past. His work has appeared in Pacific Northwest Magazine, and he is a contributor for historylink.org. Holden has been profiled in Seattle Magazine, Seattle Refined and various newspapers. His previous book, Seattle Prohibition: Bootleggers, Rumrunners & Graft in the Queen City, was released to much critical acclaim in 2019. He lives in Edmonds, Washington.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B097KNJGHD
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Arcadia Publishing (December 1, 2010)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 1, 2010
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 2977 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 147 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 23 ratings

About the author

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Brad Holden

Brad Holden

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Author. Historian. Finder of Old Things. When not out searching for local historical artifacts, Brad Holden enjoys writing about the more illicit side of Seattle’s past. He is a columnist for Seattle Magazine, is a contributing writer for HistoryLink.org (an online encyclopedia of Washington state history) and his work has also appeared in the Seattle Times. Holden has been profiled on KIRO and KOMO news, Seattle Refined, NPR, King 5 Evening! and various publications. His trilogy of books related to local Prohibition history - including his latest book, "Lost Roadhouses of Seattle" - are available online and at bookstores everywhere. He lives in Edmonds, WA.

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
23 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Cameron P Dunn
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read on a Seattle Legend!
Reviewed in the United States on August 10, 2021
Verified Purchase
After reading Brad Holden’s previous book about Seattle Prohibition, there was one character that clearly stood out amongst the host of Seattle Bootleggin’ legends: Capt. Al Hubbard. From
his mysterious engine trials on Lake Union as a youth, to his founding of what would become local-landmark KOMO, to his playing of both sides of the 30’s Seattle liqueur scene, Al Hubbard was a man that deserved more story-telling. Thankfully, that is what Holden focused on in his sophomore effort “Alfred M. Hubbard: Inventor, Bootlegger, & Psychedelic Pioneer” - and the stories are as crazy and strange as was hinted at in the first book. Holden does a masterful job in narrating Hubbard’s life from one escapade to the next, culminating in a “left-turn” as the “Johnny Appleseed of LSD”. Fun read, never boring, and interesting as hell. Highly recommend!
7 people found this helpful
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J. Rew
5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating Story Chock Full of History
Reviewed in the United States on May 21, 2022
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This book was a lot of fun to read. The story of Al Hubbard is fascinating, whether you're a NW history buff or not. The intermingling of Al's life, prohibition-era Americana, Pacific Northwest history, and early drug experimentation is pure facts-are-stranger-than-fiction gold. Holden's writing is clear and succinct, with just the right amount of artistic flair.
4 people found this helpful
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Lawrence M Blue
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book
Reviewed in the United States on August 18, 2021
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I really enjoyed reading this book. I was going to read one chapter a night but ended up reading the whole book in 2 days. Very well researched and the writing flows really nicely. I also enjoyed the author's first book on Prohibition - I can't wait for his next book.
6 people found this helpful
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Robert M. Pitzer
1.0 out of 5 stars Check your facts
Reviewed in the United States on December 10, 2021
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On page 29 of this book, the author refers to Hubbard “assembling transistor radios” in his shop, and that “transistor radios were slowly becoming a popular household item” during the time that bootleggers were defying prohibition laws. Since prohibition lasted from 1920 until 1933 in the United States, and the first transistor was produced in 1947, it seems unlikely that Hubbard was working with them in the 1920s. Glaring errors like this make one quite skeptical of the quality of research that went into the writing of this book.
3 people found this helpful
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Eric Wall
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read!
Reviewed in the United States on June 19, 2022
I’m not usually a non-fiction reader, but this book was fascinating and kept my attention start to finish! I’m surprised I hadn’t heard more about Al Hubbard before reading this- would highly recommend to anyone interested in local history. Props to Brad Holden for bringing such a unique piece of history on this local legend to life!
2 people found this helpful
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Chris
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read!
Reviewed in the United States on December 25, 2021
Fascinating story behind a relatively unknown person. Highly recommended!
4 people found this helpful
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Canticle
5.0 out of 5 stars An Important Biographical Work
Reviewed in the United States on June 2, 2022
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This is a lovingly researched book on a unique historical figure. Al Hubbard was involved in bootlegging, early radio, and psychedelic research. A very nice read.
3 people found this helpful
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