Perkins, Lucy Fitch, 1865-1937

Author and illustrator of children's books; of Evanston, Ill.; b. Lucy Fitch; married Dwight Perkins, 1891.

From the description of Papers, 1937. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 70967415

Lucy Fitch Perkins was born July 12, 1865, in Maples, IN. She was a writer and illustrator of children's books, and was also an editor. Her "Twins of the World" series told of the lives of children from more than 20 different countries and cultures. Throughout her writing career, Perkins worked from a studio at her home in Evanston, Illinois. When she died on March 18, 1937, the twenty-fifth Twins book had just been published, and she was working on another. With the coauthorship of her daughter, Eleanor Ellis Perkins, the last book of the series, The Dutch Twins and Little Brother, was published in 1938. Biographical Source: Something About the Author, Vol. 72, p. 198-200.

From the description of Lucy Fitch Perkins Collection 1911-1934. (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis). WorldCat record id: 460039892

Lucy Fitch Perkins was born on July 12, 1865 in Maples, Indiana. She studied illustration at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, graduating in 1886. She then taught in Brooklyn, New York at the Pratt Institute from 1887 to 1891. In 1891 she married architect Dwight Heald Perkins, with whom she had two children, Eleanor Ellis in 1893 and Lawrence Bradford in 1907. She spent her early career as a book illustrator and editor. After a friend and publisher encouraged her to write her own books, she published The Dutch Twins (1911), the first of her "Twins of the World" series. The focus of the books was both geographical and historical. The protagonists were always a set of twins, usually a boy and a girl, shown in their country of origin. She was inspired by a trip to Ellis Island and hoped to promote an understanding of immigrants in the United States. She would go on to publish twenty-six books in the series. She died on March 18, 1937 before finishing The Dutch Twins and Little Brother. It was completed by her daughter and published a year later.

From the description of Lucy Fitch Perkins papers, 1910-1964. (Franklin & Marshall College). WorldCat record id: 778789245

American children's author.

From the description of Letters of Lucy Fitch Perkins [manuscript], 1924 May 2 and May 31. (University of Virginia). WorldCat record id: 647806490

Lucy Fitch Perkins was born on July 12, 1865 in Maples, Indiana. She studied illustration at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, graduating in 1886. She then taught in Brooklyn, New York at the Pratt Institute from 1887 to 1891. In 1891 she married architect Dwight Heald Perkins, with whom she had two children, Eleanor Ellis in 1893 and Lawrence Bradford in 1907. She spent her early career as a book illustrator and editor. After a friend and publisher encouraged her to write her own books, she published The Dutch Twins (1911), the first of her “Twins of the World” series. The focus of the books was both geographical and historical. The protagonists were always a set of twins, usually a boy and a girl, shown in their country of origin. She was inspired by a trip to Ellis Island and hoped to promote an understanding of immigrants in the United States. She would go on to publish twenty-six books in the series. She died on March 18, 1937 before finishing The Dutch Twins and Little Brother . It was completed by her daughter and published a year later.

Bibliography

American Women Writers: A Critical Reference Guide from Colonial Times to the Present: A Critical Reference Guide from Colonial Times to the Present . 2nd ed., s.v. “Perkins, Lucy Fitch.”

Something About the Author, vol. 72.

"Lucy Fitch Perkins," Wikipedia, accessed December 19, 2011, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucy_Fitch_Perkins.

From the guide to the Lucy Fitch Perkins papers, 1909-1964, (Free Library of Philadelphia: Children's Literature Research Collection)