Florence Merriam Bailey (1863-1948) wrote numerous works for a wide range of people interested in birding.

A prominent ornithologist, Florence Merriam Bailey wrote numerous works for a wide range of people interested in birding. In addition to publishing technical guides for specialists in the field, Bailey was able to pique the interest of young people and novices through her informative and entertaining books.

The last of four children, Florence Augusta Merriam was born to Clinton Levi Merriam and Caroline Hart Merriam on August 8, 1863, in Locust Grove, a New York village in Lewis County. Merriam's mother was the daughter of County Judge Levi Hart. Her father, a merchant banker, retired about the time Merriam was born.

Merriam's love of nature was inspired by the natural setting of her family's home in the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains. It was also nurtured by her father and by her brother, Clinton...