Ellis Parker Butler

Born in Muscatine, Iowa, Butler began writing while working a series of ordinary jobs and moved to New York City in 1897. His breakthrough came with “Pigs Is Pigs,” a comic story about two guinea pigs and an inflexible railway clerk. The piece became his best-known work and helped launch a long career in popular magazines and books.

Butler wrote more than 30 books and over 2,000 stories and essays. He also worked as a banker, took an active role in his Flushing, Queens, community, and helped found the Authors’ League of America. His other notable works include The Jack-Knife Man, Dominie Dean, and the Philo Gubb stories.