Laura Rountree Smith

Born in Illinois in 1876 and later connected with Platteville, Wisconsin, Laura Rountree Smith wrote for children during the early 1900s. She died in 1924 at age 47.

Her work ranges across storybooks, poems, holiday material, and light educational writing. Surviving titles linked to her include The Bunny and Bear Book, The Fairy Babies, The Tiddly Winks, Three Little Kittens Who Lost Their Mittens, and Helps and Hints for Hallowe'en.

She is also remembered as the lyricist of the original 1917 version of “Little Sir Echo,” a song that later became widely popular as a camp and sing-along favorite. Across her writing, the tone is playful, musical, and warmly tuned to young readers.