Bellairs sets his stories in small towns, often modeled after places where he lived in his youth or during his academic career. His first three novels are set in New Zebedee, clearly modeled after his hometown of Marshall, Michigan. After he moved to Haverhill, Massachusetts, he shifted the locale of his stories to the imaginary New England town of Duston Heights, Massachusetts. Like those other novels, The Treasure of Alpheus Winterbom is set in a small town similar to one Bellairs once lived in. He once held a teaching position at St. Theresa's College in Winona, Minnesota. He sets the action of The Treasure of Alpheus Winterborn in a small town he calls Hoosac, Minnesota.

The action of The Treasure of Alpheus Winterborn takes place during the 1950s. Bellairs recreates the quality of small-town living as experienced by a young, growing boy. Because his own hometown maintained its...