Bertha Morris Parker

Bertha Morris Parker (1890–1980) was an American educator, science writer, and children's author best known as the principal author of the 16-volume Golden Book Encyclopedia. She worked for many years at the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry, where she was involved in the development of educational materials for young readers. Parker wrote or co-wrote numerous books on natural science, general knowledge, and early childhood learning.

Early life and education Bertha Morris Parker was born in 1890 in Rochester, Illinois. She attended a small school there until it was time for high school at which point she attended Springfield High School since there was no high school in Rochester at the time. She spent a year at Oberlin College, followed by a summer at Columbia University, before moving to the University of Chicago in 1912. She earned a B.S. from the University of Chicago in 1914, an S.B. in 1915, and an M.S. in 1923. and then moved to the University of Chicago Laboratory School where she taught and served as department chair until 1955.

Selected works Many of Parker's books on individual science books were reviewed including Dinosaurs, Water, Saving Our Wildlife, Electricity, Plants, and Natural History.