Margaret Crary
Margaret Crary was an accomplished American writer, born in 1906 in Carthage, South Dakota, and later moving to Sioux City, Iowa. After marrying lawyer Ralph Crary in 1926 and raising three children, she began her professional writing career in her forties. Initially working as a journalist for the Sioux City Journal, Crary also ventured into playwriting, with her works being featured on the Dr. Christian radio program in 1948. In the 1960s, she shifted her focus to writing novels for young adults, with her first book, *The Calico Ball*, recognized as a Junior Literary Guild Book of the Month. Over her literary career, she published eight young adult novels that explored various facets of Iowa's history, from early Native American experiences to contemporary life. Crary was also deeply involved in her community, serving as president of the Sioux City Public Museum and Sioux Writers, and was a member of the National League of American Pen Women. She passed away in Sioux City in 1986 at the age of seventy-nine, leaving behind a legacy of literary contributions that reflect her passion for her hometown's history.
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Margaret Crary
Writer
- Born: September 27, 1906
- Birthplace: Carthage, South Dakota
- Died: March 1, 1986
- Place of death: Sioux City, Iowa
Biography
Margaret Crary was born in 1906 in the small town of Carthage, South Dakota, and moved with her family to Sioux City, Iowa, in 1910. In 1926, she married Ralph Crary, a lawyer, with whom she had three children. Crary received her B.A. from Morningside College that same year, and received an honorary doctor of letters degree from that college in 1965.
Burdened with the responsibilities of motherhood, Crary did not begin writing professionally until she was well into her forties. At that time, she worked as a journalist for the Sioux City Journal, and she later started writing plays, two of which were aired on the Dr. Christianradio program in 1948. Many of her works were set in her longtime home, Sioux City, including a story based on a fatal highway accident that occurred during a game of chicken.
In the 1960’s, Crary moved into writing novels for young people, the first of which, The Calico Ball (1961), was named a Junior Literary Guild Book of the Month. She would go on to publish a total of eight young adult novels ranging the entire span of Iowa history from Indian experiences, English settlers, and the days of covered wagons to the lives of contemporary schoolteachers in Iowa. Crary’s deep interest in Sioux City history led her to become president of the Sioux City Public Museum and of Sioux Writers. She also was a member of the National League of American Pen Women. Crary died in Sioux City in 1986 at the age of seventy-nine.