Edward Stratemeyer

Edward Stratemeyer (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 wrote: "As oil had its Rockefeller, literature had its Stratemeyer."

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, Germany, immigrating to the United States in 1837. 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. 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. 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.

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.

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.

Personal life Stratemeyer married Magdalena Van Camp, the daughter of a Newark businessman, on March 25, 1891.

Stratemeyer enjoyed the outdoors and often took annual summer trips to the Great Lakes, Lake George and Lake Champlain with his family. They traveled as far as the west coast and 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 section of Newark. His relationships with his daughters were warm and Harriet recalled a lively atmosphere growing up. 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". and helped launch several series, including (1899) The Rover Boys (1904) 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 in high school. Indiana is a fan of Tom Swift and gives Stratemeyer advice for one of his stories.