Samuel Rutherford Crockett, known as S. R. Crockett, was born on 24 September 1859 in Balmaghie, Kirkcudbrightshire, Scotland. Raised by his Cameronian grandparents, he later moved to Castle Douglas in 1867. He won a bursary to study at the University of Edinburgh in 1876, where he pursued an MA but left in 1879 without graduating. His early career involved writing for magazines to support his education, and he spent time traveling as a tutor across Europe before returning to study for the ministry. Crockett became a minister in Penicuik in 1886 and married Ruth Mary Milner in 1887. He played a significant role in advocating for justice after the Mauricewood Pit Disaster of 1889. Crockett left the ministry in 1895 to focus on writing full-time, publishing numerous novels, short stories, and serial works. His first major success came with The Stickit Minister and some common men in 1893. He also published poetry under the pseudonym Ford Brereton and contributed to various periodicals. Crockett had four children, all of whom were featured in his children s literature. He died on 16 April 1914 in France at the age of 54.