author
Elizabeth Gerberding
1857–1902
A California writer and reformer, she wrote fiction for young readers while also taking a visible role in civic life in San Francisco. Her best-known surviving work, The Golden Chimney, blends adventure with a strong sense of place.
1 Audiobook
The Golden Chimney: A Boy's Mine
by Elizabeth Gerberding
About the author
Born in North San Juan, California, in 1857, Elizabeth Gerberding grew up in San Francisco and became known both as a writer and as an activist for women's rights and municipal reform. Contemporary and library sources connect her with civic work in San Francisco as well as with writing for younger readers.
Her best-known book is The Golden Chimney: A Boy's Mine, published in 1902, the year of her death. The novel is set in San Francisco and reflects a lively interest in California settings and opportunity, which helps give her fiction a local, grounded feel.
Some later records refer to her as Elizabeth Sears Gerberding and give a longer lifespan, but the literary record for the author of The Golden Chimney is commonly listed as 1857–1902. Because the surviving sources are not entirely consistent, it is safest to describe her as an American author associated with California, juvenile fiction, and public-minded reform work.