Margaret Murray Robertson

Who was Margaret Murray Robertson?

Margaret Murray Robertson was a Scottish-born teacher and writer.

Margaret was born in Stuartfield, Scotland, the daughter of Reverend James Robertson and Elizabeth Murray. She had a sister Mary and brothers John, Joseph, and Andrew. In 1832 her mother died, whereupon the devout family emigrated to Derby, Vermont. Four years later they moved to Sherbrooke in Quebec. Both Mary and Margaret attended Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in Massachusetts. Afterward, they became instructors at the Sherbrooke Ladies' Academy, where Margaret remained until 1865.

In 1864 she won the Galt Prize essay competition with an essay titled "An Essay on Common School Education." At the age of 42, Maragaret now left her teaching career to become a full-time writer. Her first novel, Christie Redfern's Troubles, was published in 1866. During her writing career, she had 14 or more novels published up through 1890. Most of the protagonists in her novels were female, and the themes were of home and family.

She died in Montreal, unmarried.