Henry Beston

Henry Beston Sheahan was born June 1st, 1888 in Boston, MA, and died April 15th, 1968 in Nobelboro, ME. Graduating with a Masters degree in 1911 from Harvard College, Henry taught first at the University of Lyon, in France, then returned to teach at the Harvard English department. In 1915 he joined the French Army as an Ambulance Driver in the Great War. His experiences at the Battle of Verdun are described in his first book, A Volunteer Poilu. In 1918 he became a press representative for the U.S. Navy, and while sailing with the British Grand Fleet, described his experiences in his second book, Full Speed Ahead.
Following the Great War, Henry turned to writing fantasy children's stories such as The Firelight Fairy Book and The Starlight Wonder Book. During this time he met and married the Newbery Medal winning childrens author Elizabeth Coatsworth. Spiritually shaken by his experiences in the Great War, Henry sought a year of solitude on the beach at Eastham, in Cape Cod. While there, he became enraptured with nature, and wrote his most famous book, The Outermost House, a story which became a major motivating factor for the creation of the Cape Cod National Seashore.