On January 18, 1936, John Gould Fletcher married Charlie May Simon, a woman of literary talents in her own right. During the 1930s, she excelled in children’s literature. Many considered her children’s book Robin on the Mountain, published in 1934, a classic in this genre. Fletcher’s reputation and works did not overshadow Simon’s literary career. In fact, Simon’s book royalties added to their income, and the couple soon became dependent on her literary output in order to pay their bills.
In 1936, John Netherland Heiskell, owner of the Arkansas Gazette, commissioned Fletcher to write a poem entitled “The Story of Arkansas,” commemorating Arkansas’s 1936 centennial. A revised version of this poem appeared in Fletcher’s collection of poetry entitled South Star, published in 1941. Also during this time, Fletcher promoted Arkansas’s folk culture and the establishment of fine arts institutions in the state.
The couple frequently traveled during the early years of their marriage, with trips to New York, Santa Fe, and New Hampshire. The couple slowed their travels in 1941 upon the completion of their new home in west Little Rock, which they called “Johnswood.”