Seymour Eaton

Born in Epping, Ontario, on May 7, 1859, Seymour Eaton built a varied career as an author, journalist, editor, and publisher after moving to the United States. He became known not just for writing, but for finding ways to bring books and magazines to a wide audience.

He founded the Booklovers' Library in 1900, a subscription lending service that grew into the Tabard Inn Library and became one of the largest circulating libraries of its time. Eaton also organized large-scale publishing projects, including The Roosevelt Bears series, whose cheerful bear characters made him especially popular with young readers.

He died on March 13, 1916. Today he is remembered as an energetic literary entrepreneur as well as a writer, someone who helped connect entertainment, publishing, and everyday readers at a moment when mass-market reading was rapidly expanding.