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Landon, Margaret, 1903-1993.

 Person

Biographical Statement

Margaret Landon (September 7, 1903 – December 4, 1993) was an American writer who became famous for Anna and the King of Siam, her 1944 novel of the life of Anna Leonowens. Her book on Leonowens was published in 1944 and became an instant bestseller. It eventually sold over a million copies and was published in more than twenty languages. In 1950, Mrs. Landon sold the musical play rights to Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammenstein II, who created the musical The King and I from her book. A later work, Never Dies the Dream, about her own experiences, appeared in 1949.

Born as Margaret Dorothea Mortenson to Anenus Duabus "A.D." and Adelle Mortensen in Somers, Wisconsin, she was one of three daughters in a devout Methodist family. The family moved to Evanston, Illinois, where she graduated from Evanston Township High School in 1921. She attended Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois, graduating in 1925. She taught school for a year, then married Kenneth Landon, who she knew from Wheaton, and in 1927 they signed up as Presbyterian missionaries to Thailand. Between 1927-1937, in addition to having three children, Margaret Schoeherr, Carol Pearson, and William, while also running a mission school in Trang, Landon read extensively about the country. During her readings, she learned about Leonowens. When the family returned to America in 1937, she soon began writing articles and then began researching material for a book on Leonowens. The family moved to Washington, D.C. in 1942 when her husband joined the United States Department of State as an expert adviser on Southeast Asia. In 1947, Kenneth authored "Southeast Asia, Crossroad of Religion," subsequently reprinted in 1969 and 1974. He also wrote "The Chinese in Thailand" and "Siam in Transition." Her 4th child, Kenneth, Jr., was born in Washington, D.C. He followed the lead of his parents and took up writing about his own field of interest, releasing a weighty (904 pages) tome, "God of Glory: The Promise of Relationship" in 1992. Margaret Landon was married sixty-seven years. She died in Alexandria, Virginia, December 4, 1993, aged 90, leaving 13 grandchildren and twenty-five great grandchildren. One of her great grandchildren is also a writer. Mrs. Landon is interred in Wheaton Cemetery in Illinois.

Citation:
Author: Wheaton College Archives & Special Collections staff
Citation:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Landon

Found in 572 Collections and/or Records:

DuPage Heritage Gallery Records

 Collection
Identifier: SC-074
Scope and Contents The DuPage Heritage Gallery Records comprise a wide variety of written records created by the organization’s staff during the course of its work from its inception and over the subsequent 25 years. These are materials pertaining to the Gallery itself and to specific exhibits. The organization of the collection tries to reflect this distinction in its divisions, which include “General”, “Administration”, “Publications”, “Gallery Dedication (Governor’s Dinner)” and “Inductees”....
Dates: Created: 1974-2000; Other: Majority of material found in 1981-1999; Other: Date acquired: 2001

Landon Chronicles (1850-1923): Dorthea Bergersdatter (hour 9, clip 2)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC09-02
Dates: Digitized: 1850-1923

Landon Chronicles (1857-1916): Siam: Phya Ratsida (hour 48, clip 5)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC48-05
Dates: Digitized: 1857-1916

Landon Chronicles (1860-1930): Henry Clayton Landon (hour 5, clip 3)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC05-03
Dates: Digitized: 1860-1930

Landon Chronicles (1863-1934): Edward "Ed" Dayton Landon (hour 5, clip 2)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC05-02
Dates: Digitized: 1863-1934

Landon Chronicles (1869-1953): William Bradley Landon Sr. (hour 5, clip 1)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC05-01
Dates: Digitized: 1869-1953

Landon Chronicles (1875-1925): Annenus Duabus Mortenson (hour 9, clip 3)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC09-03
Dates: Digitized: 1875-1925

Landon Chronicles (1877-1967): Adelle Johanne Estburg (hour 9, clip 4)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC09-04
Dates: Digitized: 1877-1967

Landon Chronicles (1887): Margaret on Her Parents and Extended Family (hour 58, clip 2)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC58-02
Dates: Digitized: 1887

Landon Chronicles (1892-1942): Kenneth and Marget on Prince Damrong (hour 63, clip 3)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC63-03
Dates: Digitized: 1892-1942

Landon Chronicles (1895): William and Mae Landon were Married (hour 1, clip 5)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC01-05
Dates: Digitized: 1895

Landon Chronicles (1900-1901): Adelle Estburg Saw Her First Motorcar (hour 11, clip 4)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC11-04
Dates: Digitized: 1900-1901

Landon Chronicles (1903-1906): Margaret's Earliest Memories (hour 11, clip 12)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC11-12
Dates: Digitized: 1903-1906

Landon Chronicles (1903-1910): Margaret Dragged a Christmas Tree Home (hour 14, clip 6)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC14-06
Dates: Digitized: 1903-1910

Landon Chronicles (1903-1917): Margaret Was Raised to be Polite (hour 12, clip 14)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC12-14
Dates: Digitized: 1903-1917

Landon Chronicles (1903-1919): African Americans in Evanston (hour 13, clip 9)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC13-09
Dates: Digitized: 1903-1919

Landon Chronicles (1903-1919): Mary Peabody was Margaret's Best Friend (hour 13, clip 3)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC13-03
Dates: Digitized: 1903-1919

Landon Chronicles (1903-1919): Mrs. D'Armant Minium (hour 8, clip 1)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC08-01
Dates: Digitized: 1903-1919

Landon Chronicles (1903-1919): Recreation During Margaret's Childhood (hour 13, clip 4)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC13-04
Dates: Digitized: 1903-1919

Landon Chronicles (1903-1920): Margaret Grew Up in a Musical Household (hour 15, clip 11)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC15-11
Dates: Digitized: 1903-1920

Landon Chronicles (1903-1922): Fashion in the Mortenson Home (hour 15, clip 6)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC15-06
Dates: Digitized: 1903-1922

Landon Chronicles (1903): Margaret's Birth Certificate (hour 11, clip 10)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC11-10
Dates: Digitized: 1903

Landon Chronicles (1903): Margaret's Birth (hour 11, clip 2)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC11-02
Dates: Digitized: 1903

Landon Chronicles (1904): Margaret's Baptism (hour 12, clip 10)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC12-10
Dates: Digitized: 1904

Landon Chronicles (1904): Margaret's Family Moved to Racine (hour 11, clip 3)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC11-03
Dates: Digitized: 1904

Landon Chronicles (1905): Mae Fletcher's Family Background (hour 1, clip 4)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC01-04
Dates: Digitized: 1905

Landon Chronicles (1905): Margaret's Family Moved to Chicago (hour 11, clip 11)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC11-11
Dates: Digitized: 1905

Landon Chronicles (1906): Insulting Incident (hour 12, clip 1)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC12-01
Dates: Digitized: 1906

Landon Chronicles (1906): Margaret Had an Ear Operation (hour 11, clip 13)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC11-13
Dates: Digitized: 1906

Landon Chronicles (1907-1908): How Kenneth Came to 'Love' Fig Newtons (hour 2, clip 12)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC02-12
Dates: Digitized: 1907-1908

Landon Chronicles (1907-1976): Charlotte Johns (hour 8, clip 2)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC08-02
Dates: Digitized: 1907-1976

Landon Chronicles (1907): Evangeline Made Mudpies (hour 14, clip 8)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC14-08
Dates: Digitized: 1907

Landon Chronicles (1907): Margaret Gets Scarlet Fever Again (hour 12, clip 2)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC12-02
Dates: Digitized: 1907

Landon Chronicles (1907): Margaret Shares Her Cream Puff (hour 12, clip 7)

 Digital Record
Identifier: LC12-07
Dates: Digitized: 1907

Additional filters:

Type
Digital Record 568
Unprocessed Material 2
Collection 2
 
Subject
Basketball. 7
Death. 7
Marriage. 7
King and I (Motion picture) 4
Missionaries -- Thailand. 4