There sat his mother by the fire, and in her arms lay the princess fast asleep.

On September 6th, 1863, Jessie Willcox Smith was born to her parents Henry Smith and Katherine DeWitt Willcox Smith in Northwest Philadelphia. After graduating from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (PAFA) under the direction of Thomas Eakins, Smith would embark on a long and fruitful career. Her reputation would precede her, and today Smith is regarded as one of the most significant children's book illustrators of all time.