Rock Island, IL: She was a bestselling writer of mystery novels until the early 1950s, and a leader in what is now called the "cozy" mystery genre, but you've probably never heard of her. The Rock Island Library will help you learn more about the late Charlotte Murray Russell with a free program on 2:00 pm on Wednesday, March 30 at the Rock Island Main Library, 401 19th Street.
Local historian and PhD in American Studies professor Dr. Maryann Wherry will present the free program. The program is free and open to the public.
In choosing Charlotte Murray-Russell for a program on local women's history, the library is honoring one of its own. "We first heard of her during a Fall 2014 Frieze lecture on writers of our hometowns, and when we realized she'd actually worked at the Rock Island Library, we knew we'd have to feature her someday," said Lisa Lockheart, publicity and outreach liaison for the Rock Island Library.
Russell published 20 mystery novels with Doubleday and Company between 1935 and 1953 before leaving writing to work for the Rock Island Library. Many of her books featured Jane Amanda Edwards, a forty-something spinster living in a Midwestern town known as Rockport. The character was featured in Death of an Eloquent Man (1936) and 11 other novels. (Source: Golden Age of Detection Wiki)
Charlotte Murray Russell was born in Rock Island in 1899. She attended Knox College and Augustana College before graduating with honors from the University of Chicago in 1921. In addition to writing and her library work, she taught French and Latin at Rock Island High School for five years. Russell passed away on her 93rd birthday on May 22, 1992.
For more information about Rock Island Library hours, services and programs, visit the library's new website at www.rockislandlibrary.org, call 309-732-READ, or follow the library on Facebook or Twitter.
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