Kay Cleaver Strahan (January 4, 1888 – August 14, 1941) was an American writer of short stories and mystery novels. She created the character of the "crime analyst" Lynn McDonald.
Strahan was born in La Grande, Oregon,[1] on January 4, 1888, the daughter of Dr. Alonzo Cleaver and Laura Bryson.[2]
A Few of the Eminent Women of Oregon, Sheba Hargreaves, Eva Emery Dye, Anne Shannon Monroe, Kay Cleaver Strahan, Edith Knight Hill (Marian Miller)
She was also a mystery murder novelist, among her books: Peggy Mary (1915), Something That Begins with "T" (1918), The Desert Moon Mystery (1927), Footprints (1929), Death Traps (1930), Three Kinds of Love (1931),[3]October House (1932), The Meriwether Mystery (1932), The Hobgoblin Murder (1934), The Desert Lake Mystery (1936).[2] She created the character of the "seasoned crime analyst" Lynn McDonald.[4][5] Her book Footprints won the Scotland Yard Prize for the best Mystery and Detective Story of the Year; the contest was held by The Crime Club and the winner received the prize of $2500 ($45,780 in 2024 dollars). The three Crime Club judges who chose Footprints were Will Cuppy, William Rose Benet and Grant Overton.[6][5] She used Oregon settings for much of her writing and generally provided a surprise ending.[7][8]Alice Hamilton wrote in her private letters that she was reading Strahan.[9]
She lived at 1084 Wilson St., Portland, Oregon.[2]
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