Elizabeth Hoffman Honness McKaughan (June 29, 1904 – 2003), better known as Elizabeth Honness, was an American writer, poet, and writer. Honness authored
children's books
A child (plural, : children) is a human being between the stages of childbirth, birth and puberty, or between the Development of the human body, developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers ...
in the mystery genre. During her career, she published 21 books between 1936 and 1983. Researching archeology for her novels, Honness traveled throughout Italy, Guatemala, and Mexico. She studied the
Greco-Roman
The Greco-Roman civilization (; also Greco-Roman culture; spelled Graeco-Roman in the Commonwealth), as understood by modern scholars and writers, includes the geographical regions and countries that culturally—and so historically—were di ...
,
Mayan
Mayan most commonly refers to:
* Maya peoples, various indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica and northern Central America
* Maya civilization, pre-Columbian culture of Mesoamerica and northern Central America
* Mayan languages, language family spoken ...
,
Etruscan __NOTOC__
Etruscan may refer to:
Ancient civilization
*The Etruscan language, an extinct language in ancient Italy
*Something derived from or related to the Etruscan civilization
**Etruscan architecture
**Etruscan art
**Etruscan cities
**Etruscan ...
,
Nuragic
The nuraghe (, ; plural: Logudorese Sardinian , Campidanese Sardinian , Italian ), or also nurhag in English, is the main type of ancient megalithic edifice found in Sardinia, developed during the Nuragic Age between 1900 and 730 B.C. To ...
, and
Aztec
The Aztecs () were a Mesoamerican culture that flourished in central Mexico in the post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec people included different Indigenous peoples of Mexico, ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those g ...
cultures.
Early life and education
Honness was born to George Gill Honness and Mary Van Syckle Leigh in
Boonton, New Jersey
Boonton is a Town (New Jersey), town in Morris County, New Jersey, Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the town's population was 8,815, an increase of 468 (+5.6%) from the 2010 United States census, 20 ...
on June 29, 1904. She grew up in the
Catskill Mountains
The Catskill Mountains, also known as the Catskills, are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Mountains, located in southeastern New York. As a cultural and geographic region, the Catskills are generally defined as those areas c ...
area of southeastern New York. Her father worked as the civil engineer in charge of the Reservoir Department of
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. Honness attended the Beard School in Orange, New Jersey (now Morristown-Beard School). In her freshman year at the school, she created a drawing that made the roll of honor at '' St. Nicholas'' magazine, a children's magazine. Following high school, Honness completed her bachelor's degree in English at
Skidmore College
Skidmore College is a private liberal arts college in Saratoga Springs, New York. Approximately 2,650 students are enrolled at Skidmore pursuing a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree in one of more than 60 areas of study.
History
Sk ...
in
Saratoga Springs, New York
Saratoga Springs is a city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the area, which has made Saratoga a popular resort destination for over 2 ...
in 1926. During her studies, Honness penned a poem selected for the anthology ''Poets of the Future'' published by the Stratford Company in Boston, Massachusetts.
In 1931, Honness returned to Skidmore to read selections of her poetry set to music to an audience at College Hall. She read from her published volume titled ''Poems from Beyond the Hill''. Honness later served as an alumnae member of Skidmore College's board of trustees for seven years (1937-1944). She also served as a secretary and class agent for her graduating class. In 1987, the Skidmore College Alumni Association awarded Honness their Distinguished Achievement Award to recognize professional and personal accomplishments.
Writing career and legacy
Honness served as the managing editor of ''
American Girl
American Girl is an American line of dolls released on May 5, 1986, by Pleasant Company. The dolls portray eight- to fourteen-year-old boys and girls of a variety of ethnicities, faiths, and social classes from different time periods throughou ...
'', a magazine for teenage girls published by the
Girl Scouts of the USA
Girl Scouts of the United States of America (GSUSA), commonly referred to as simply Girl Scouts, is a youth organization for girls in the United States and American girls living abroad. Founded by Juliette Gordon Low in 1912, it was organized a ...
, for eight years (1934–1942).Elizabeth Hoffman Honness papers /ref> While working there, she exhibited a watercolor painting at a 1942 exhibition by Girl Scouts staff at Riverside Museum in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. The exhibition helped promote art instruction for girl scouts.
During the 1920s and 1930s, Honness wrote poetry for periodicals that included
Scribner's
Charles Scribner's Sons, or simply Scribner's or Scribner, is an American publisher based in New York City, known for publishing American authors including Henry James, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Kurt Vonnegut, Marjorie Kinnan Rawli ...
Commonweal
Commonweal or common weal may refer to:
* Common good, what is shared and beneficial for members of a given community
* Common Weal, a Scottish think tank and advocacy group
* Commonweal (magazine), ''Commonweal'' (magazine), an American lay-Cath ...
''. She also wrote advertising copy for
Century Company
The Century Company was an American publishing company, founded in 1881.
History
It was originally a subsidiary of Charles Scribner's Sons, named Scribners and Company, but was bought by Roswell Smith and renamed by him after the Century Associa ...
, Macmillan Company, and Shelton Looms between 1927 and 1934. Honness published her first children's books in 1936 and 1937, and she continued writing children's books until the 1970s. After moving to
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
in 1942, she switched from writing fiction for younger children to writing
middle grade
Middle grade fiction is fiction intended for children between the ages of 8 and 12. While these books are sometimes grouped together with books for other age bands and called collectively "children's books", middle grade is distinct from, and is ...
mysteries (8 to 12 years old).
The Children's Literature Research Collection at the Free Library of Philadelphia houses typescripts,
galley proofs
In printing and publishing, proofs are the preliminary versions of publications meant for review by authors, editors, and proofreaders, often with extra-wide margins. Galley proofs may be uncut and unbound, or in some cases electronically tran ...
, and engraver's proofs for several of Honness' books, which she published between 1957 and 1966. The library staff extemporaneously interviewed her and fellow authors
Carolyn Haywood
Carolyn Haywood (January 3, 1898 – January 11, 1990) was an American writer and illustrator from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She created 47 children's books, most notably the series under the "Eddie" and "Betsy" titles.Reynal & Hitchcock
Reynal and Hitchcock was a publishing company in New York City. Founded in 1933 by Eugene Reynal and Curtice Hitchcock, in 1948 it was absorbed by Harcourt, Brace.'' American Authors and Books: 1640 to Present Day'' Third Revised Edition, Crown ...
. They had one child, Molly McKaughan. Taking after her mother, Molly McKaughan worked as a writer and editor first for The Paris Review, New York Magazine, and a number of short-lived monthlies. She then worked as a freelance writer and authored ''The Biological Clock'' in 1987. From 1998 to 2016, Molly McKaughan was a senior officer at the
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) is an American philanthropic organization. It is the largest one focused solely on health. Based in Princeton, New Jersey, the foundation focuses on access to health care, public health, health equity, ...
, where she directed their Program Results Reporting Unit. In 2019, she published "Recovering Myself: A Memoir in Poetry."
Honness's ancestors helped found the town of