Margaret Sidney was an American author who used the pseudonym Margaret Sidney. In addition to producing popular children's novels, she ran her late husband Daniel Lothrop's publishing company. After purchasing The Wayside Country House, they worked hard to make it a hub of literary activity. Harriet Mulford Stone was born in New Haven, Connecticut, in 1844.As the daughter of New Haven architect Sidney Mason Stone, she was "brought up in an atmosphere of culture and learning enhanced by free access to her father's large library." She "delighted in creating imaginary people" since her childhood. She attended seminaries near her home and graduated from Miss Dutton's School at Grove Hall in New Haven in 1862. She did not publish anything until 1878, when, at the age of 34, she began contributing short stories to Wide Awake, a Boston children's magazine. "Polly Pepper's Chicken Pie" and "Phronsie Pepper's New Shoes" were two of her most popular stories. The magazine's editor, Ella Farman, suggested that Stone write more. Harriett's success with short stories inspired her to write Five Little Peppers and its eleven sequels. The original novel was released in 1881, the same year Stone married Daniel Lothrop. Daniel had formed the D. Lothrop Company in Boston, which published Harriett's novels under the pseudonym Margaret Sidney.
