{{short description|American book packager, publisher and writer (1862–1930)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=October 2019}} {{Infobox writer | birth_name = Edward Stratemeyer | image = Edward L. Stratemeyer, c.1894.jpg | pseudonym = [[Victor Appleton]], Ralph Bonehill, [[Franklin W. Dixon]], [[Laura Lee Hope]], [[Carolyn Keene]], [[Roy Rockwood]] and [[Arthur M. Winfield]] | birth_date = {{Birth date|1862|10|04}} | birth_place = [[Elizabeth, New Jersey]], United States | death_date = {{Death date and age|1930|05|10|1862|10|04}} | death_place = [[Newark, New Jersey]], United States | resting_place = [[Evergreen Cemetery, Hillside]], [[New Jersey]], United States | resting_place_coordinates = {{Coord|40.6925|-74.211|region:US-NJ_type:landmark}} | occupation = Publisher and writer | nationality = American | genre = Adventure, mystery and science fiction | notableworks = Creator of the [[book series]]:<br />{{•}}''[[Bobbsey Twins|The Bobbsey Twins]]''<br />{{•}}''[[Bomba, the Jungle Boy]]''<br />{{•}}''[[The Colonial Series]]''<br />{{•}}''[[The Dana Girls]]''<br />{{•}}''[[Dave Dashaway]]''<br />{{•}}''[[Don Sturdy]]''<br />{{•}}''[[The Hardy Boys]]''<br />{{•}}''[[Jack Ranger]]''<br />{{•}}''[[Nancy Drew]]''<br />{{•}}''[[Rover Boys|The Rover Boys]]''<br />{{•}}''[[Tom Swift]]'' | spouse = {{marriage|Magdalena Van Camp|1891}} | children = 2, including [[Harriet Adams]] }}
'''Edward Stratemeyer'''<!-- Stratemeyer had no middle name or initial, according to the Keeline article Nancy Drew MYTH-tery Stories. --> ({{IPA-cen|ˈ|s|t|r|æ|t|ə|ˌ|m|aɪ|ər}};<ref>{{Cite web|last=CBS Sunday Morning|title=Nancy Drew turns 50|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FeKEQAO_2FU&t=37s|url-status=bot: unknown|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220923103901/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FeKEQAO_2FU&t=37s|archive-date=September 23, 2022|date=2016-09-23|access-date=2022-09-23|website=YouTube}}</ref><ref name="Mythery">{{Cite book |last=Keeline |first=James |url=https://stratemeyer.org/keene/nancy-drew/syndicate-and-nancy-drew-myths/ |title=Nancy Drew and Her Sister Sleuths: Essays on the Fiction of Girl Detectives |publisher=McFarland & Company |year=2007 |isbn=978-0786439959 |editor-last=Cornelius |editor-first=Michael |publication-date=September 2, 2008 |pages=13-32 |chapter=Nancy Drew MYTH-tery Stories}}</ref> (October 4, 1862 – May 10, 1930) was an American publisher, writer of [[children's fiction]] and founder of the [[Stratemeyer Syndicate]].
Stratemeyer created many well-known children's fiction [[book series]], including [[The Rover Boys]], [[The Bobbsey Twins]], [[Tom Swift]], [[The Hardy Boys]], and [[Nancy Drew]], many of which sold millions of copies and remain in publication. On his legacy, ''[[Fortune magazine|Fortune]]'' wrote: "As oil had its [[John D. Rockefeller|Rockefeller]], literature had its Stratemeyer."<ref name="lookingglassreview.com">{{cite web|title=Authors and Illustrators Profiles: Edward L. Stratemeyer|url=http://www.lookingglassreview.com/html/edward_stratemeyer.html|website=lookingglassreview.com|access-date=February 9, 2015}}</ref>
==Early life== Stratemeyer was born the youngest of three children in [[Elizabeth, New Jersey]], to [[tobacconist]] Henry Julius Stratemeyer and Anna Siegel. They were both from [[Hanover|Hanover, Germany]], immigrating to the United States in 1837.<ref name="Nancy Drew's Father">{{cite magazine|last1=O'Rourke|first1=Megan|title=Nancy Drew's Father|url=http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2004/11/08/nancy-drews-father|magazine=[[The New Yorker]]|access-date=February 8, 2015}}</ref> Anna was first married to Henry's younger brother George Stratemeyer, with whom she had three sons. Following George's death in a cholera outbreak, she married Henry.<ref name="Mythery" />
The Stratemeyer children were educated in English and spoke it to each other.<ref name="Edward Stratemeyer">{{Cite web|url=http://www.immigrantentrepreneurship.org/entry.php?rec=186|title=Edward Stratemeyer|last=Furlong|first=Jennifer|date=August 28, 2014|editor-last=Hoyt|editor-first=Giles R.|website=Immigrant Entrepreneurship|series=Vol. 3|publisher=German Historical Society|access-date=May 31, 2016}}</ref> In his childhood, Stratemeyer read the works of [[Horatio Alger]] and [[William T. Adams]], writers who penned rags-to-riches tales of the hardworking young American, which greatly influenced him.<ref name="Edward Stratemeyer" /> He also listened to stories from his father, a former miner in the [[California gold rush|1849 California gold rush]].<ref name="Mythery" /><ref name="Edward Stratemeyer" />
As a teenager, Stratemeyer operated his own [[printing press]] in the basement of his father's tobacco shop, distributing flyers and pamphlets among his friends and family. His first story paper was ''Our American Boys'' which he published in January 1883.<ref name=johnson>{{cite book | title=Edward Stratemeyer and the Stratemeyer Syndicate | last=Johnson | first=Deirdre | publisher=Twayne Publishers | year=1993 | isbn=0-8057-4006-6}}</ref>{{rp|2}} After he graduated from high school, he went to work in his father's store. At the age of 26, he sold his first story, ''Victor Horton's Idea'', to the children's magazine ''Golden Days'' for $76, over six times the average 1888 weekly paycheck.<ref name="Nancy Drew's Father"/><ref name="online-literature.com">{{Cite web|url=http://www.online-literature.com/stratemeyer/|title=Edward Stratemeyer – Biography and Works. Search Texts, Read Online. Discuss.|website=online-literature.com|access-date=May 29, 2016}}</ref>
==Career== Stratemeyer moved to Newark, New Jersey, in 1890 and opened a paper store. He ran his shop while continuing to write stories under pseudonyms. He was able to write for many genres including detective dime novels, westerns and serials that ran in newspapers.<ref name="online-literature.com"/> Many of his Westerns included elements from his father's stories, such as the description of [[Sutter's Mill]] given to him by his father.<ref name="Mythery" />
Stratemeyer wrote 59 [[dime novel]]s between 1892 and 1897.{{r|johnson|p=18}} From 1893 to 1895, Stratemeyer was the editor for the [[Street & Smith]] boys' story paper ''Good News''.{{r|johnson|pp=3-4}}
In 1894, he published his first full-length book, ''Richard Dare's Venture'', which was the first in his ''Bound to Succeed'' series. It contained autobiographical content and was similar to Alger's rags-to-riches story formula.<ref name="online-literature.com"/> He published a romance in the ''New York Weekly'' in 1895, writing as Edna Winfield.{{r|johnson|p=4}}
He published two historical novels in 1898 as Captain Ralph Bonehill.{{r|johnson|p=4-5}}
Stratemeyer wrote and published the first book in ''[[The Rover Boys]]'' series in 1899, which became a tremendously popular series in the vein of the classic [[dime novel]]. The ''Rover Boys'' were published under his pseudonym Arthur M. Winfield. Each volume had a preface from Stratemeyer, thanking his readers and touting the other books. He said this series was his personal favorite.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Rover Boys Series for Young Americans|url=http://seriesbooks.info/rover.html|website=seriesbooks.info|access-date=February 8, 2015 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241016051731/https://seriesbooks.info/rover.html | archive-date=October 16, 2024}}</ref>
Stratemeyer formed the [[Stratemeyer Syndicate]] in 1905 and hired writers to write stories based on his ideas. He paid them a flat rate for each book and kept the copyrights to the novels.{{r|johnson|p=6}}
== Personal life == Stratemeyer married Magdalena Van Camp, the daughter of a Newark businessman, on March 25, 1891.<ref name="lookingglassreview.com" /> The couple had two daughters: [[Harriet Adams|Harriet Stratemeyer Adams]] (1892–1982) and Edna C. Squier (1895–1974), both of whom would take over the [[Stratemeyer Syndicate]] after his death.<ref name="Edward Stratemeyer"/><ref>{{cite web|last1=Keeline|first1=James D.|title=Stratemeyer Syndicate pseudonyms Bobbsey Twins, Tom Swift, Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew|url=http://www.trussel.com/books/strat.htm|website=trussel.com|access-date=February 8, 2015}}</ref>
Stratemeyer enjoyed the outdoors and often took annual summer trips to the [[Great Lakes]], [[Lake George (lake), New York|Lake George]] and [[Lake Champlain]] with his family. They traveled as far as the west coast and [[Yosemite National Park|Yosemite]]. A humble man, he never sought public attention and preferred living a private and quiet life with his family at their home on N. 7th Street in the [[Roseville, Newark|Roseville]] section of Newark. His relationships with his daughters were warm and Harriet recalled a lively atmosphere growing up.<ref name="Edward Stratemeyer"/>
Stratemeyer was a member of the Roseville Athletic Club and the New Jersey Historical Association.
Stratemeyer died at age 67 in [[Newark, New Jersey]] on May 10, 1930, of [[lobar pneumonia]]<ref name="lookingglassreview.com"/> and was buried in [[Evergreen Cemetery, Hillside|Evergreen Cemetery]] in [[Hillside, New Jersey]].<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=uDfIJt5RFWgC&dq=edward+stratemeyer+evergreen+cemetery&pg=PA5 ''Old Burial Grounds of New Jersey: A Guide'']</ref> On May 12, 1930, two days after his death, the ''New York Times'' reported that his ''Rover Boys'' series "had sales exceeding 5,000,000 copies".<ref name="Edward Stratemeyer"/>
==Accomplishments== Stratemeyer was listed in the first edition of ''[[Marquis Who's Who|Who's Who in America]]'' in 1899.{{r|johnson|p=5}}
Stratemeyer pioneered the [[book packaging|book-packaging]] technique of producing a consistent, long-running series of books using a team of [[freelancer|freelance]] writers. All of the books in the series used the same characters in similar situations. All of the freelance writers, including [[Mildred Benson|Mildred Wirt]], who developed the character of Nancy Drew, were published under a pen name owned by his company. Most of the work was done through correspondence, as writers like Wirt lived far away.<ref name="Mythery" />
Through his [[Stratemeyer Syndicate]], founded in 1906, Stratemeyer employed a massive number of editors, [[Copywriting|copy writers]], [[Shorthand|stenographers]], [[Collaborative writing|cowriters]] and [[Secretary|secretaries]]. They greatly contributed to a new genre of juvenile fiction<ref name="Omnibus II 2005 p. 148">{{cite book | last1=Wilson | first1=Douglas | last2=Fischer | first2=G. Tyler | title=Omnibus II: Church Fathers Through the Reformation | publisher=Veritas Press | date=2005 | isbn=978-1-932168-44-0 | url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Omnibus_II/zClmDnl3b3EC?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=stratemeyer | access-date=April 5, 2026 | page=148}}</ref> and helped launch several series, including<ref name="SS1">{{cite web| last=Andrews|first=Dale| title=The Hardy Boys Mystery | url=http://www.sleuthsayers.org/2013/08/the-hardy-boys-mystery_27.html |work=Children's books |publisher=SleuthSayers| location=Washington| date=August 27, 2013}}</ref> * (1899) ''[[Rover Boys|The Rover Boys]]'' * (1904) ''[[Bobbsey Twins|The Bobbsey Twins]]'' * (1905) ''Dave Porter'' * (1910) ''[[Tom Swift]]'' * (1912) ''[[Baseball Joe]]'' * (1927) ''[[The Hardy Boys]]'' * (1930) ''[[Nancy Drew]]'' * (1934) ''[[The Dana Girls]]''
==Fictional depictions== A fictionalized version of Stratemeyer appears in the television series ''[[The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles]]'', portrayed by [[character actor]] Lee Lively. In the series, Stratemeyer is the father of the fictional Nancy Stratemeyer, who dates [[Indiana Jones (character)|Indiana Jones]] in high school. Indiana is a fan of Tom Swift and gives Stratemeyer advice for one of his stories.<ref>{{cite episode |title=Princeton, February 1916 |series=[[The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles]] |network=ABC |date=March 20, 1993 |season=2 |number=6}}</ref>
==See also== {{portal|Biography|Children's literature}}
* [[List of children's literature authors]] * [[List of people from New Jersey]] * [[List of people from New York City]] * [[List of publishers]] {{clear}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Further reading== * [[Sandra Tsing Loh|Loh, Sandra Tsing]] (October 2005). [https://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200510/nancy-drew "The Secret of the Old Saw{{spaced ndash}}Nancy Drew Has Two Mommies"]. ''[[The Atlantic]]'' Retrieved February 11, 2012. (A book review Melanie Rehak's ''Girl Sleuth: Nancy Drew and the Women Who Created Her''. Orlando, Florida: [[Harcourt (publisher)|Harcourt]]. * Rehak, Melanie ''Girl Sleuth: Nancy Drew and the Women Who Created Her'' (2005). Orlando, Florida: [[Harcourt (publisher)|Harcourt]]. {{ISBN|978-0-15-101041-7}}.) * Prager, Arthur (1971). ''Rascals at Large, or, The Clue in the Old Nostalgia''. New York: [[Doubleday (publisher)|Doubleday]]. ISBN 978-9997486073. * {{cite book |title=Scannell's New Jersey's First Citizens and State Guide |year=1918 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=a783AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA488 }}
==External links== {{wikisource|Author:Edward Stratemeyer|Edward Stratemeyer}} {{commons category}} * {{LCAuth|n80125963|Edward Stratemeyer||}} * [http://www.stratemeyer.org Stratemeyer.org], a [[fansite]] on the [[Stratemeyer Syndicate]] * {{Gutenberg author |id=1626}} * {{FadedPage|id=Stratemeyer, Edward|name=Edward Stratemeyer|author=yes}} * {{Internet Archive author |sname=Edward Stratemeyer}} * {{Librivox author |id=1669|}} (writing as Arthur M. Winfield) * {{Librivox author |id=3320}} (writing as captain Quincy Allen) * {{Find a Grave|2950}}
{{Hardy Boys}} {{Nancy Drew}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stratemeyer, Edward}} [[Category:Place of death missing]] [[Category:1862 births]] [[Category:1930 deaths]] [[Category:19th-century American novelists]] [[Category:19th-century American publishers (people)]] [[Category:20th-century American novelists]] [[Category:20th-century American publishers (people)]] [[Category:American children's writers]] [[Category:American crime fiction writers]] [[Category:American people of German descent]] [[Category:Burials at Evergreen Cemetery (Hillside, New Jersey)]] [[Category:Businesspeople from New York City]] [[Category:Writers from Elizabeth, New Jersey]] [[Category:Pulp fiction writers]] [[Category:Stratemeyer Syndicate]] [[Category:Writers from New York City]] [[Category:American male novelists]] [[Category:19th-century American male writers]] [[Category:Businesspeople from Elizabeth, New Jersey]] [[Category:Dime novelists]] [[Category:20th-century American male writers]] [[Category:Novelists from New York (state)]] [[Category:Novelists from New Jersey]] [[Category:19th-century pseudonymous writers]] [[Category:20th-century pseudonymous writers]]