The Rover Boys at Colby Hall

Arthur M. Winfield (Edward Stratemeyer) was born on October 4, 1862, to Henry Julius Stratemeyer a tobacconist, and Anna Siegel. He was an American publisher, writer of Children's fiction, and founder of the Stratemeyer Syndicate. He was probably the most creative author in the world, producing over 1,300 books and selling over 500 million copies. He also created many famous fictional book series for juveniles, including The Rover boys, The Bobbsey Twins, Tom Swift, The Hardy boys, and Nancy Drew. As a teenager, Stratemeyer worked at his own printing press in the basement of his father's tobacco shop, distributing flyers and brochures to his relatives. These included stories titled The Newsboys Adventure and The Tale of a Lumberman. After graduating from high school, he worked in his father's shop. He is not even 26 in 1888 while Stratemeyer sold his first story Victor Horton's Idea, to the famous children magazine The Golden Days.