Randolph Caldecott is known as the father of the modern picture book and, an essayist for the Encyclopedia of World Biography Supplement declared, "as one of the greatest and most influential illustrators in the field of c hildren's literature." Caldecott's illustrated books, first published in the 1870s and 1880s, are noted for their innovative blend of picture and text. They "represented a new kind of book for young people," according to Leonard S. Marcus in Horn Book. "The Caldecott Medal, bestowed annually since 1938 upon the 'most distinguished American picture book for children in the United States,' has helped make Randolph Caldecott's name synonymous with children's book illustrations of e xcellence," as Michael Scott Joseph wrote in the Dictionary of Literary Biography.

Displays Artistic Talent

Not much has been documented about Caldecott's early childhood. He was born in the village of Chester in Cheshire, England, where his father...