Alberta Powell Graham (1875–1955)

Alberta Powell Graham was born in Harrington, Delaware and moved to Ottumwa, Iowa, with her family when she was a child. She graduated from the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago, and became a noted musician and composer. She also studied at Columbia University, Northwestern University, Cornell University, and with private teachers. She served as Supervisor of Music in the public schools of Iowa, and published more than 200 songs for children.
In 1939, she moved to Washington, D.C., where she did historical research at the Library of Congress. She wrote biographies of famous American figures for children, and contributed stories, poems, articles, plays, and songs to numerous magazines.