Eliza F. Pollard (1838–1911)

Eliza Fanny Pollard was born in in London, England, the daughter of Edward William Pollard, a surgeon, and his first wife who died when she was 12 years old. Her step-brother Alfred William Pollard became a writer and biographer. Eliza worked briefly as a governess before turning to literature as a profession, beginning with the historical novel Avice, or Page from the History of Imperial Rome (1864). Over the next 37 years, she wrote many more then 40 works of fiction and biographies aimed at young adult readers. She never married but did adopt a daughter later in life.