Beatrix Potter

Beatrix Potter was born in London in 1866. During a typically sheltered upper class childhood, she and her brother kept a succession of animals which they drew and studied. Potter excelled at drawing from nature and attempted to publish her scientific drawings with little success. In her thirties, she turned to writing and illustrating children’s stories. After being rejected by several publishers, Peter Rabbit, her first book, was published in 1902 and was an immediate success. Her thirty animal stories are still in print and widely read. Potter spent the final portion of her life as Mrs. William Heelis, living in the Lake District farming sheep, collecting antiques, and preserving the countryside she has become so firmly associated with through her books. She died in 1943.