Born: July 10, 1905Died: May 28, 2008 Ohio connection: Resident Toledo Journalist and author Mildred Augustine Wirt Benson was born July 10, 1905, in Ladora, Iowa, where, even as a child, she knew she would be a writer. Benson authored more than 130 books and, although she published under several pseudonyms, she is best known as Carolyn Keene, the …
Read More Mildred Wirt BensonWilmington Born: October 5, 1878 Dead: June 24, 1948 Ohio connection: Birth Karl (originally spelled with a K, later changed to Carl) Everton Moon was born in Wilmington on October 5, 1878, to Sylvester Bronson Moon, a medical doctor, and Lucy (Brunette) Moon. He attended public school and graduated from Wilmington High School, class of 1897, soon …
Read More Carl MoonBorn: June 21, 1850Died: June 11, 1941 Ohio connection: Birth Cincinnati Daniel Carter Beard, author, illustrator, and a founder of the Boy Scouts of America, was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1850. Beard, the son of celebrated portrait artist James Henry Beard and Mary Caroline (Carter) Beard, developed an intense love of nature in his youth. He …
Read More Daniel Carter BeardFostoria Born: 1946 Ohio connection: Birth Sandra Markle was born in 1946 in Fostoria, Ohio, the daughter of Robert and Dorothy (Sauler) Haldeman. She received a B.A. degree from Bowling Green University in 1968. That same year, she married William Markle, with whom she had two children, Scott and Holly. Sandra Markle went on to do graduate …
Read More Sandra MarkleWest Salem Born: 1949 Ohio connection: Resident Dandi Daley Mackall, originally from Missouri, has published about 400 books for children and adults, with sales of 4 million in 22 countries. Her works have been published by numerous publishers that included, Simon & Schuster, Penguin, and Harper Collins. She’s a frequent guest on radio talk shows, has hosted over …
Read More Dandi Daley MackallBorn: October 23, 1918Died: July 14, 2011 Ohio connection: Resident Columbus Author, writer, photographer, and illustrator James P. Barry was born in Alton, Illinois. At the age of eight, he took his first ride on a Great Lakes freighter and, soon after, learned to sail a Mackinaw boat. He graduated from University High School in Normal, Illinois, …
Read More James P. BarryBorn: July 28, 1932Died: October 31, 2016 Ohio connection: Birth Dayton Born Natalie Zane Moore on July 28, 1932 in Dayton, Ohio, esteemed writer and illustrator Natalie Zane Babbitt was inspired by Sir John Tenniel’s illustrations in Alice in Wonderland to work with pen and ink, which became her specialty. She graduated from the Laurel School, a private academy for …
Read More Natalie Zane Moore BabbittBorn: 1947 Ohio connection: Birth Columbus Katherine Ayres was born in Columbus to Ray and Betty Kent. Ayres has been a lover of books since early childhood, when she began inventing stories before she could write them. Ayres completed her undergraduate studies at the College of Wooster and earned an M.A. from Tufts University. Her childhood home state …
Read More Katherine AyresBorn: 1964 Ohio connection: Birth Columbus Jacqueline Woodson was born in 1964 in Columbus, Ohio. She grew up in Greenville, South Carolina and Brooklyn, New York. She received a B.A. in English from Adelphia University in 1985, and also studied at the New School for Social Research. Writing has been a passion for Woodson since childhood. …
Read More Woodson, JacquelineBorn: May 13, 1937 Died: June 14, 1995 Ohio connection: Birth Euclid Roger Joseph Zelazny was born in Euclid, Ohio. He was educated at Western Reserve University (B.A., 1959) and subsequently received a master’s degree at Columbia University (1962). Zelazny worked as a claims representative and specialist for the Social Security Administration from 1962 until 1969 …
Read More Roger Zelazny