Elisabeth Ogilvie was born in Boston on May 20, 1917 to Frank and Maude Ogilvie. She was raised in Dorchester and Wollaston, Massachusetts, summering on the island of Criehaven in Maine. The family spent nearly every summer in Maine, which would make a strong impression on Elisabeth as she grew up. Her childhood was happy and creative, as she was involved with both ballet and Scottish Highland dancing. Her family's love of words was also very influential in shaping Elisabeth's career. Her mother Maude wrote for her school magazine, and later for the Boston Post. Her brothers enjoyed writing plays and poetry, and her father was a voracious reader. Even though Elisabeth loved to make up stories, her true passion for writing did not fully emerge until her English classes with Frank Smoyer at North Quincy High School. He encouraged Elisabeth to write for the school's literary magazine, The Manet. After her first story was published in the journal, she wrote a new piece every two weeks, and continued to contribute works to The Manet from eighth grade through her senior year. Elisabeth graduated at the height of the Depression, so a college education was not an option. She was determined, however, to improve herself as a writer, so she enrolled in a Writing for Publication course at Harvard University in 1936. Shortly after, her first story was published in a Massachusetts newspaper Sunday supplement. Her instructor, Donald MacCampbell, became a staunch supporter, and offered to be her agent when the course ended. Elisabeth's stories were published in several publications, such as Woman's day, Redbook, and Good housekeeping. In 1944, she published her first novel, High tide at noon, about a lobstering family who lived on fictional Bennett's Island. Shortly after she moved to Cushing, Maine, and wintered in a farmhouse - called Tide's Way - on 33 acres on Gay's Island where she lived with longtime companion (and another Maine writer) Dorothy Simpson for fifty years. Dorothy and her husband, Guy, were great friends to Elisabeth, and often gave her advice and inspiration for her writings. With the critical and public success of High tide at noon, it did not take long for Elisabeth to write the second installment, Storm tide (1945), which won the New England Press Association Award for Best Novel in 1945 and the Northeast Woman's Press Association Award in 1946. The Bennett's Island series eventually grew to include eight books, the last in the series, The day before winter, being published in 1997. She wrote 46 adult, young adult, and children's books. Though most of her novels are set in Maine, her Jennie Glenroy series is set in Scotland, the place she called her second favorite after Maine, to which she traveled extensively throughout her life. Elisabeth also wrote several mystery and suspense novels, including No evil angel (1956) and The devil in tartan (1980), as well as historical fiction. She became involved with several writers organizations, such as the Authors Guild and Mystery Writers of America, as well as lecturing at schools, libraries, and professional organizations, like Maine Media Women. Elisabeth garnered many fans throughout her long career for her rich descriptions of setting, heartwarming storylines, and great attention to characterization. She died on the ninth of September 2006.
From the description of Elisabeth May Ogilvie papers, 1933-2006, undated. (University of New England). WorldCat record id: 767524746
