Bettina A. Norton's professional life has centered on American graphic arts and social history. Her interest in Benjamin Blyth developed when she was in charge of the print collection at the former Essex Institute, now incorporated into the Peabody Essex Museum. She is the author of Edwin Whitefield, Nineteenth Century North American Scenery (Barre Press, 1977) and numerous articles. A graduate of Wellesley College, she lives in Boston, in the house in which she grew up.