Jessie Willcox Smith revolutionized the illustration of children in books and magazines at the beginning of the twentieth century. She realistically captured children as individuals, portraying them in the context of a romantic, serene, and maternal world. A generation of mothers measured their children against Smith's ideal portrayed on the covers of Good Housekeeping.

Smith was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Charles Henry Smith, an investment broker, and Katherine DeWitt Willcox Smith. The Smiths had two sons and two daughters. Jessie was the younger of the two girls. The Smiths, newcomers to Philadelphia from New York, earned a comfortable enough living to send Jessie to private elementary schools in Philadelphia and, at age sixteen, to live with cousins in Cincinnati, Ohio, to finish her education.

Smith, who dedicated her life to creative pursuits, chose to live simply. As a young woman and throughout her life, Smith preferred to...