Henderson, Le Grand, 1901-1964

Author and illustrator of children's books, whose works were published under the name Le Grand.

Le Grand Henderson (1901 - 1964), most often writing under the "nom de plume" Le Grand, was a writer and illustrator of books for all ages--preschool to adult. He is best known for his folklore series (9 books, including Cap'n Dow and the Hole in the Doughnut and Cats for Kansas ) for children 4 - 8, and for his Augustus series (12 books) depicting the country-wide adventures of a "Huck Finn" type lad, for children 8 - 12.

Henderson, who in his own words "spent a childhood lifetime roaming the woods of Northwest Connecticut, where the Berkshire Hills begin and the spirit of Thoreau was very close," stayed close to home for college, attending the Yale School of Fine Arts for four years.

After leaving Yale, Henderson headed to New York City, full of "youth, hope and a desire to paint landscapes." Instead he ended up designing heating and ventilating equipment, switchboards for submarines, and later, window and interior displays for Macy's and Bloomingdale's.

Soon tiring of city life, Henderson gave in to his desire to travel and to "a long-suppressed urge to write and illustrate books." Henderson traveled to St. Paul, Minnesota where he began a year long journey in a houseboat down the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico. From this journey came the creative energy that turned Henderson into a full time writer and illustrator-and a very successful one, based on over 30 published books, and several magazine stories.