Carolyn Sherwin Bailey

Carolyn Sherwin Bailey (1875–1961) was an American author and educator whose career spanned several decades of the early twentieth century. She is perhaps best known for her Newbery Medal-winning novel Miss Hickory (1946), but her broader body of work encompasses hundreds of short stories, folk tale retellings, and nature fables aimed at young readers. Bailey studied at Columbia University’s Teachers College and drew on her background in education to craft stories that were not only entertaining but thoughtful in their use of language and narrative structure.

Much of Bailey’s shorter fiction reflects a deep interest in the natural world and in the oral storytelling traditions of various cultures. A significant number of her tales draw on Native American legend and folklore, exploring the relationships between humans, animals, and the land. Stories such as How Maple Sugar Came, The Chipmunk Who Chattered Too Much, and How The First Mayflowers Came follow the familiar “pourquoi” or “why” tale structure — explaining the origins of natural phenomena through legend and myth. Similarly, How The Squirrel Got Wings and Why The Bear Sleeps All Winter blend animal characters with moral and observational lessons rooted in the natural world.

Bailey also retold and adapted folk tales from European and global traditions, bringing stories from a wide range of cultures to young American readers. How Drakestail Went To The King is drawn from French folklore, while The Story Of Lambikin traces its roots to the Indian subcontinent. Her retelling of King Midas reaches back to classical mythology. Across these varied sources, Bailey maintained a consistent narrative voice — clear, rhythmic, and well-suited to reading aloud — that made her work popular in schoolrooms and homes throughout the early decades of the twentieth century.

Bailey contributed to numerous educational periodicals and compiled many anthologies throughout her career, helping to shape the canon of children’s literature in the United States during a formative period. Her work as both an author and an editor placed her at the center of early efforts to bring high-quality, culturally diverse storytelling to young readers. Her collections remain a record of the folk and literary traditions she worked to preserve and adapt for new generations of readers.