Sidford F. (Sidford Frederick) Hamp

Born in Liverpool, England, in 1855, he moved to the United States as a teenager. Archival and library sources describe him as joining the Hayden Geological Survey, an experience often linked to the landscapes and frontier settings that later shaped his fiction.

He went on to write books for younger readers, along with short stories, plays, and opera librettos. Many of his best-known works were set in Colorado, including The Boys of Crawford's Basin, The Treasure of Mushroom Rock, and The Trail of the Badger.

He died in 1919. Although not widely known today, his work remains of interest to readers drawn to early juvenile adventure fiction and stories of the American West.