| Caroline Clement Watson Rankin | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1864 Marquette, Michigan |
| Died | 1945 |
| Pen name | Carroll Watson Rankin |
| Nationality | American |
| Citizenship | American |
| Genres | Short stories, novels |
| Notable work(s) | Dandelion Cottage |
| Spouse(s) | Ernest Rankin |
Carroll Watson Rankin is the pen name of American author Caroline Clement Watson Rankin (1864–1945).
Rankin was born in Marquette, Michigan, in the Upper Peninsula, and raised her four children there. Her first writing assignment came at the age of 16, when she was hired as a reporter for the Daily Mining Journal. She kept the job until her marriage to Ernest Rankin in 1886.[1] Her free lance stories were published by Century, Harper's Monthly, Youth's Companion, St. Nicholas, Leslie's, Lippincott's, Metropolitan and other widely circulated periodicals. Her best known novel is Dandelion Cottage, published in 1904 by Henry Holt and Company. She first wrote the story serially for her own children. Considered a regional classic in the midwest, it tells of four young girls who negotiate the use of a derelict cottage as a playhouse by pulling dandelions for the owner, prosperous Mr. Black. The real life model for Mr. Black is generally acknowledged to be Marquette businessman and philanthropist, Peter White.[2] The original Dandelion Cottage is located at 440 East Arch and is privately owned.[3] The Marquette County History Museum still publishes Dandelion Cottage.
Rankin allowed her characters much latitude in emotion and behavior at a time when writing for children was often tepid and tutelary. Other of her novels for youth include The Girls of Gardenville (1906), The Anti Foster Pet Association (1907), The Adopting of Rosa Marie (1908), Castaways of Pete's Patch (1911), The Cinder Pond (1915), Girls of Highland Hall (1921), Gipsy Nan (1926), Finders Keepers (1930), Wolf Rock (1933) and Stump Village (1935).