Virginia Lee Burton was born August 30, 1909 in Massachusetts. She was an author and illusrator of children's books. Her titles include Maybelle the Cable Car, Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel and Choo Choo: The Story of a Little Engine Who Ran Away. In 1942, she won the Caldecott Medal for her title, The Little House. Burton died on October 15, 1968 in Massachusetts.