Aug. 12, 1867

The classical scholar Edith Hamilton was born on August 12, 1867. She retired as head mistress of an exclusive girl's school before she began publishing the numerous works describing the classical world, which made her famous, such as The Greek Way, which, though written in 1930, was a Book of the Month Club selection in 1957. Hamilton has been described as an animal lover, never without a cat or a dog.