Women - Hunterdon County, New Jersey

HARRIET STRATEMEYER ADAMS
Harriet was the daughter of the prolific children's book publisher Edward
Stratemeyer. He published his first volume in 1899 and by 1906 had 150 juvenile books
to his credit. Among his series were the popular series Tom Swift, The Hardy Boys, The
Rover Boys and The Bobbsey Twins. The Stratemeyer Syndicate was renowned.
After graduation from Wellesley, Harriet worked for her father, editing manuscripts
he brought home from the office. When he died in 1930, Harriet and her sister Edna
Squire were the heirs of the Syndicate. They completed the manuscripts left by
Mr. Stratemeyer. Harriet began writing her own stories, and eventually took over the
family Syndicate.
Pen names she wrote under included Carolyn Keene in the Nancy Drew series,
Franklin Dixon in The Hardy Boys, Laura Lee Hope in The Bobbsey Twins, and May
Hollis Barton in Barton Books for Girls. Harriet Adams continued to write the books in
these various series until her death in 1982.
Nancy Drew became her favorite character and except for the three books created
by her father, Harriet Adams was the author of all the other Nancy Drew stories. The
books contained no violence, profanity or lying, and have continued to be favorites of
children everywhere. By 1980 Nancy Drew had sold 70,000,000 books in the United
States alone. As a child, Harriet Stratemeyer spent summers on a farm she loved in
Lebanon Township. As an adult, she purchased her own farm in Pottersville. It was
there that she died at the age of 89 in March 1982.
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