October 1, 1901: "The Tale of Peter Rabbit" Is Published

October 1, 1901: The Tale of Peter Rabbit is published. It becomes a classic of children's literature.

Helen Beatrix Potter was born on July 28, 1866 in West Brompton, West London, and grew up isolated from other children, though her parents allowed her to have pets. With her family, she spent holidays (or, as Americans would say, "vacations") in Scotland, and in the Lake District of Cumbia, in England near the "border" with Scotland. Her observations of these places made her an expert on local plant life and animals (flora and fauna), and this inspired her writing.

She wrote over 60 books, dropping her first name for her pen name, and many of them were scientific in nature. In her time, she may have been the world's leading author on the subject of fungi, including mushrooms. But it was her 23 Peter Rabbit books that gained her the most fame.

She had 4 rabbits as a child, and named her main character after the nursery rhyme character Peter Piper, famous for picking a peck of pickled peppers. Peter Rabbit lives with his mother, and 3 sisters: Flopsy, Mopsy and Cotton-Tail. They are obedient. Peter is not: He tends to run off, and come into conflict with a farmer named Mr. McGregor.

With the royalties from her 1st book, Beatrix Potter bought a farm. She ended up buying many farms, to preserve their natural beauty from being bespoiled by developers. Much of it is not part of Lake District National Park. She did not get married until she was 47 years old, never had children of their own, and died on December 22, 1943. She was 77.

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October 1, 1901 was a Tuesday. There were 3 baseball games played on this day:

* The Philadelphia Phillies swept a doubleheader from the Cincinnati Reds, 4-0 and 6-2 at League Park in Cincinnati. Bill Duggleby pitched a 5-hit shutout in the opener.

* And the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Boston Beaneaters, 9-0 at Exposition Park in Pittsburgh. Honus Wagner went 2-for-3 with a walk. Deacon Phillippe pitched a 4-hit shutout, outpitching Bill Dinneen. Two years later, to the month, they would face each other again, with Dinneen pitching for the Boston Americans, forerunners of the Red Sox, to victory over Phillippe's Pirates in the 1st-ever World Series.