Susan Bogert Warner was born July 11, 1819 in New York City, New York. In 1836, she moved to Constitution Island with her sister, Anna. When she was 31, she published her first book, The Wide, Wide World, which was overwhelmingly popular and became a bestseller. In 1856, she wrote The Hills of Shatemuc, which sold 10,000 copies the day it was published.
She continued to write novels for decades afterward under the pen name Elizabeth Wetherell. Deeply religious, Susan wrote several books on Biblical topics. Her works include The Old Helmet (1863), Melbourne House, (1864), Walks from Eden (1866), Sceptres and Crowns (1875), A Story of Small Beginnings (1872), Pine Needles (1877), Diana (1877), Nobody (1882); and A Red Wallflower (1884).
For forty years, she taught Bible classes to West Point cadets with her sister, Anna. When Susan died in 1885, she was buried at West Point.