Lockhart Amerman (1911–1969) was an American minister and novelist. Born in New York City in 1911 to William Libbey Amerman and Carrie Lockhart, he attended Collegiate School in New York City and then studied at

Haverford College Haverford College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Haverford, Pennsylvania. It was founded as a men's college in 1833 by members of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), began accepting non-Quakers in 1849, and became coeducational ...

He was editor of ''The Haverfordian'' (the campus literary magazine) in 1930. He was associate editor of the ''1931 Record'' (the senior class yearbook). Amerman also played on the cricket team for four years at

. After graduating from

in 1931, he attended

Princeton Theological Seminary Princeton Theological Seminary (PTSem), officially The Theological Seminary of the Presbyterian Church, is a private school of theology in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1812 under the auspices of Archibald Alexander, the General Assembly of ...

and graduated in 1935, writing a thesis entitled “Markheim's Mirror: A Study of the Pauline Doctrine of Conscious.” After ordination as a Presbyterian minister, he served as Assistant Pastor of the

Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church is a Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) church in New York City. The church, on Fifth Avenue at 7 West 55th Street in Midtown Manhattan, has approximately 2,200 members and is one of the larger PCUSA congregations. The ...

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 ...

. Amerman served as pastor of the Sewickley Presbyterian Church in

Sewickley, Pennsylvania Sewickley is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, west northwest of Pittsburgh along the Ohio River. It is a residential suburb of Pittsburgh. The population was 3,827 according to the United States Census 2010, 20 ...

, near

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

, from 1939 until 1968. He married Louise Landreth in Bristol, Pennsylvania in 1940 (and they would go on to have four children). The family would often vacation at a cabin built by his father at Tupper Lake in the

Adirondacks The Adirondack Mountains (; a-də-RÄN-dak) form a massif in northeastern New York with boundaries that correspond roughly to those of Adirondack Park. They cover about 5,000 square miles (13,000 km2). The mountains form a roughly circular d ...

. Amerman was an active scholar as well as a minister. He published ''Where Saints Have Trod'' with the Gibson Press in 1943. He published “The Menace of the Sunday School,” in The ''Christian Century'', Vol. LXI, No. 6 (February 9, 1944), p. 174 criticizing the simplistic theology often taught in Sunday schools. He also published a book of poems entitled ''Wheat for a Penny'' with Thistle House in 1945. He published “The Pulpit Steps” in ''Theology Today'' in 1949. He was awarded the degree of

Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ran ...

and was on the faculty of what was then known as the

Western Theological Seminary Western Theological Seminary (WTS) is a private seminary located in Holland, Michigan. Established in 1866, it is affiliated with the Reformed Church in America, a mainline Reformed Protestant denomination in Canada and the United States. ...

(now the

Pittsburgh Theological Seminary Pittsburgh Theological Seminary (PTS) is a Presbyterian graduate seminary in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1794, it houses one of the largest theological libraries in the tri-state area. History Pittsburgh Theological Seminary was formed ...

). Amerman published several well-received young adult mystery novels about the adventures of Jonathan Flower (a teenage son of an American spy). The first book, ''Guns in the Heather'', was published in 1963. This was followed by ''Cape Cod Casket'' in 1964. Amerman finished the trilogy with ''The Sly One'' in 1966. ''Guns in the Heather'' would go on to be made into a film by Disney (entitled

The Secret of Boyne Castle ''Guns in the Heather'' is a 1969 Walt Disney adventure film directed by Robert Butler and produced by Ron Miller. It stars Kurt Russell, Glenn Corbett and Alfred Burke. It was originally broadcast in parts on ''Walt Disney's Wonderful World ...

) and released on Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color in 1969 (starring

Kurt Russell Kurt Vogel Russell (born March 17, 1951) is an American actor. He began acting on television at the age of 12 in the Westerns on television, western series ''The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters (TV series), The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters'' (19 ...

). It was released under the title of “Guns in the Heather” in Europe and in a Spanish translation as "El Secreto del Castillo." It would later be re-broadcast as “Spy-Busters” on American television in 1978. Lockhart Amerman died in 1969 at the age of 58.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Amerman, Lockhart American Presbyterian ministers 20th-century American novelists 1911 births 1969 deaths