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Birth
Nelle Harper Lee was born on April, 28 1926 in Monroeville, Alabama. -
Lee befriends Truman Capote
Harper Lee befriended a boy in her neighborhood named Truman Streckfus Persons. Truman was an eccentric child who was sent to live with relatives in Monroeville. Their friendship lasted decades. He was also a writer and eventually adopted the pan name Truman Capote. -
Huntingdon College
Harper Lee attended Huntingdon College, a women's college in Alabama. -
The University of Alabama
Harper Lee transfers to The University of Alabama where she pursued a law degree. Lee wrote for the campus newspaper and humor magazine. -
Capote bases character on Lee
Truman Capote publised an authobiographal novel called "Other Voices, Other Rooms". The book has a tomboyish character named Isabel who is based on Harper Lee. -
Career Change and Move
Harper Lee quits law school and moves to New York to pursue writing career. -
Work
Harper Lee supported herself in New York while working for an airline. She worked for for several years. She did not do much writing. -
Lee returns to writing
On Christmas, Harper Lee's friends put money together and buy her a year off of work so she can continue writing. From then on she supports herself as a writer. -
To Kill A Mockingbird
"To Kill A Mockingbird" is published. It becomes an immediate success. The plot and characters are loosely based on her observations of her family and neighbors, as well as an event that happened near her hometown in 1936, when she was 10 years old. "To Kill A Mockingbird" is probably the most widely read book dealing with race in America. -
Lee wins the Pulizter Prize
Lee was awarded the Pulizter Prize for "To Kill A Mockingbird" at the age of 35. -
The Movie
The film version of "To Kill A Mockingbird" is released. The movie starred Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch and Mary Badham as Scout. The film was an instant success. -
Best of the Century
The Library Journal voted "To Kill A Mockingbird" the best novel of the twentieth century. -
Academy Induction
Harper Lee was inducted into The American Academy of Arts and Letters. To be nominated to the Academy is thought of as the highest formal recognition of artistic talent and accomplishment in America -
Presidential Medal of Freedom
President George W. Bush presents Harper Lee with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
