author
Robin Ranger
1827–1900
Best known by the pen name Robin Ranger, this 19th-century Methodist minister wrote lively, moral tales for young readers while also producing practical and popular religious reference books.
1 Audiobook
Up in the garret
by Robin Ranger
About the author
Born in New York City in 1827, James Midwinter Freeman was an American clergyman and writer who published children’s books under the name Robin Ranger. He studied at Wesleyan University and Mount Union College, then entered the Methodist ministry.
Freeman served pastoral charges in New Jersey and later became an assistant editor for Sunday-school and tract publications of the Methodist Episcopal Church. His writing moved between two worlds: cheerful, instructive stories for boys and more serious works on Bible history, customs, and teaching.
That mix of storytelling and religious education helped make him a versatile Victorian-era author. He died in 1900, leaving behind both juvenile fiction and nonfiction works that continued to circulate well after his lifetime.