Parker Fillmore

Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on September 21, 1878, Parker Hoysted Fillmore studied at the University of Cincinnati and graduated in 1901. He then traveled to the Philippines to work as a teacher, an experience that later became part of the story of how he developed his storytelling style.

Fillmore became known as an American author and editor of folktales and fairy tales for children, especially stories drawn from Central and Northern Europe. Among the books reliably associated with him are Czechoslovak Fairy Tales (1919), The Shoemaker's Apron (1920), The Laughing Prince (1921), and Mighty Mikko (1922).

His work is remembered for opening a door to traditional storytelling from outside the usual English fairy-tale canon. Fillmore died on June 5, 1944, in Amherst, Virginia.