Dykeman Waldron Baily (1871-1953) was born during the Reconstruction period, in Mount Kisco, New York. Baily and his family moved to Elkin, North Carolina, where he was elected town Mayor. He served in that office for two years and in 1902 he pursued office as a State Senator. His novels attracted the attention of director, Lewis J. Selznick, who produced a "Photoplay" [silent film] of Heart of the Blue Ridge in 1915. His works include: Homeward Trail (1916), When the Cock Crows (1918), June Gold (1922) and The Autobiography of Waldron Baily (1958).