Optic Oliver 1822-1897

William Taylor Adams (1822-1897), known by his pseudonym Oliver Optic, was a prolific American author and academic who wrote 126 books and over 1,000 stories, primarily for children. He was a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives and taught in Boston schools for twenty years before resigning in 1865 to focus entirely on literature. Among his best-known works were the Boat Club series and the Blue and Gray series set during the Civil War.