The Billie Bradley Series Summaries
#1 Billie Bradley and Her Inheritance
       Or, The Queer Homestead at Cherry Corners
Billie Bradley, accompanied by her friends, Laura Jordan and Violet Farrington, return to the school building to retrieve Laura's book.  While in Miss Begg's classroom, Billie clowns around and accidentally breaks a valuable statue worth $100.  Billie knows that she must find a way to repay Miss Beggs, but Billie's father does not have the money.

The problem weighs heavily on Billie, especially because Billie hopes to attend Three Towers Hall, a boarding school, next year with her chums.  Now that Billie owes Miss Beggs $100, her father will be unable to pay for Billie's school tuition.  Billie struggles to avoid crying as her friends excitedly discuss Three Towers Hall and their future plans.  Billie's brother, Chet, ever loyal to Billie, gives up his plans to attend Boxton Military Academy, much to the disappointment of the boys.

Billie Bradley and Her Inheritance
"There it is!  "My inheritance!"
A letter arrives stating that Billie's namesake, Aunt Beatrice, has passed away.  Billie soon learns that Aunt Beatrice has left her property at Cherry Corners to Billie.  Billie is disappointed since what she needs is $100.  Billie and her friends travel to Cherry Corners to examine the property, which is reputedly haunted.  Even though the property appears to have little value, Billie hopes that a careful examination will reveal something that will help her pay for the statue and her tuition.
#2 Billie Bradley at Three Towers Hall
       Or, Leading a Needed Rebellion
Billie and her friends return from Cherry Corners with Billie's treasure chest.  During the journey, the train crashes, and Billie loses track of her trunk.  A man grabs Billie's trunk in the confusion.  The young people pursue the thief, and the trunk is recovered.

Billie, Laura, and Violet journey to Three Towers Hall to begin their freshman year.  Amanda Peabody and Eliza Dilks, Billie's two sworn enemies, are assigned to the same dormitory room, much to the girls' dismay.

The girls have fun at school and are lucky to be inducted into the exclusive Ghost Club, of which the most popular girls are members.  School life would be perfect, except for two crabby old teachers.  Miss Ada and Miss Cora Dill are placed in charge of the school when Miss Walters, the headmistress, is called away on an emergency.  Much to the girls' horror, Miss Ada and Miss Cora are left in charge of the school.

Billie Bradley at Three Towers Hall
"The girls swept past them, and ran down the steps of the school.
The Dill sisters restrict the cafeteria's food to the point that all of the girls go hungry.  Billie decides to lead a revolt against the sisters, becoming the hero of all of her classmates, but at the same time, risking expulsion.
#3 Billie Bradley on Lighthouse Island
       Or, The Mystery of the Wreck
Billie, Vi, and Laura get lost in the woods near Three Towers Hall.  It begins to rain, so the girls seek shelter.  They find a strange cabin with a low door.  The owner, Hugo Billings, comes along while the girls are in the cabin.  The man acts like he might be crazy, but helps the girls get back to the school safely.

A new teacher at Three Towers Hall, Miss Arbuckle, loses her photo album, and Billie finds it in the woods.  When Billie returns the album to Miss Arbuckle, the woman grabs it and cries as she looks at the pictures of the children.  Billie wishes she could help both Miss Arbuckle and Hugo Billings.

Soon, the school term ends, and the girls travel to Lighthouse Island to stay at Connie Danvers' bungalow.  The young people have fun bathing, boating, and fishing, yet Billie wishes she could solve a mystery.

Billie Bradley on Lighthouse Island
The girls came out on the point where the lighthouse stood.
Billie has not forgotten Hugo Billings or Miss Arbuckle, and she wonders whether she will ever know who the children are who are pictured in Miss Arbuckle's album.  A surprising turn of events helps Billie solve the mystery and bring happiness to both Hugo Billings and Miss Arbuckle.
#4 Billie Bradley and Her Classmates
       Or, The Secret of the Locked Tower
Billie, Vi, and Laura skate on Lake Molata near Three Towers Hall.  Suddenly, the girls hear a cry for help.  Three young children, a boy and two girls, have fallen through thin ice into the icy water.  The girls rescue the children and learn that their mother is Polly Haddon, who is very poor.

When the children are returned home, the girls learn that Polly's life would be easier if she could only find her husband's lost invention.  The invention represents a large sum of money, which would help Polly tremendously.

With the blessing of Miss Walters, the girls take food to Polly Haddon's family.  Privately, Billie hopes that she can somehow find the lost invention.

The young people enjoy various winter activities, including sledding.  Billie and Teddy have a misadventure when their sled travels down an unfamiliar path and crashes.

Billie Bradley and Her Classmates
They marched through crying "Way for the Queen."
After Billie and Teddy crash, they encounter a simpleton, Nick Budd, who grudgingly helps them find their way back to the school.  Ultimately, Nick Budd holds the clue to discovering what happened to the lost invention, and Billie must find a way to reveal that information.
#5 Billie Bradley at Twin Lakes
       Or, Jolly Schoolgirls Afloat and Ashore
Billie and her friends convince their old grammar school teacher, Miss Martha Beggs, to spend her summer vacation with them in a cabin at Twin Lakes as their chaperone.  The boys also plan to spend their summer at Twin Lakes in a second cabin.

Shortly before the young people leave for Twin Lakes, they meet an eccentric artist, Myra Bossenet, who is missing some of her work.  The boys find Myra Bossenet's pictures and receive a reward of two hundred dollars.  Billie feels that Myra Bossenet has some hidden sorrow and wishes she could help her.

At Twin Lakes, the young people meet a girl named Huldah who is abused by her guardian, a man named Jerry.  Huldah is terrified of Jerry.  She likes to draw, but she is forced to hide her drawings from Jerry.

Billie Bradley at Twin Lakes
Never had there been such hilarity over the cooking of a meal.
One day, Jerry discovers Huldah's drawings and destroys them!  Jerry's behavior worsens, and Huldah runs away.  Billie and her friends give Huldah a place to stay, and Billie has a hunch that she knows the truth about Huldah's past and sets a plan in motion that might make Huldah's life better.
#6 Billie Bradley at Treasure Cove
       Or, The Old Sailer's Secret
Billie, Laura, and Vi are caught in a series of sudden explosions in the woods near Three Towers Hall when a load of dynamite explodes at a nearby road camp.  The girls narrowly escape certain death.  As the explosions come to an end, the girls hear a cry for help.  They find an old man with a tree laying on top of him.  With difficulty, the girls rescue the man, whose name is Ben Halcomb.

Ben Halcomb is the cousin of the new math teacher, Miss Pauline Halcomb.  Ben has come to Twin Towers to enlist Miss Halcomb's help in finding a buried treasure.  Miss Halcomb does not believe Ben's tale and refuses to help.

Ben tells his story to Billie.  A dying sailor recently gave Ben a crumbled up map to a Chinese treasure buried at Treasure Cove.  Ben hopes to find the treasure so that he can help Mary, the widow of his best friend who was lost at sea.

Billie Bradley at Treasure Cove
They dug till their backs were sore.
Ben decides to let the young people help him find the treasure.  They travel to Treasure Cove with Ben and begin their search.  The search turns out to be much harder than expected, and the young people begin to wonder whether they will ever find the treasure—if it really exists.
#7 Billie Bradley at Sun Dial Lodge
       Or, School Chums Solving a Mystery
As Billie and her friends return from Treasure Cove, the train abruptly brakes due to a broken bridge.  Several passengers are injured, and while the bridge is repaired, the girls leave the train to seek a doctor.  While in town, the girls witness a giantess attacking an old woman.  They help the woman to flee, and then return to the train.

The woman gets on the train, and Billie pays her fare.  Teddy brings Billie the bad news that a valuable piece of luggage has been stolen.  Once the young people reach New York, they enlist the help of a police detective.

Meanwhile, the young people decide to vacation at Sun Dial Lodge, which belongs to Laura's family.  Once at Sun Dial Lodge, the young people learn that Sun Dial Lodge has a ghost, and Billie sees a strange man in a secluded garden.

Billie Bradley at Sun Dial Lodge
They found Mrs. Bedge in the middle of the cellar floor, her cane raised threateningly.
Billie and her friends share some exciting adventures as they try to learn the identity of the man and discover why he is trespassing at Sun Dial Lodge.
#8 Billie Bradley and the School Mystery
       Or, The Girl from Oklahoma
On an outing near Three Towers Hall, Billie slips over the side of a cliff and is rescued by a new girl, Edina Tooker.  Edina is from Oklahoma, and her rough and tumble ways make her the victim of many cruel comments from the more sophisticated girls at the school.

Billie vows to help Edina, but to her surpise, Billie's best friends Laura and Vi refuse to help.  Even worse, they snub Billie.  Despite the cruelty, Billie continues with her plan and helps Edina purchase a stylish new wardrobe.

Many of the girls begin to thaw towards Edina, just based on her improved appearance.  Amanda Peabody and Eliza Dilks continue to relentlessly belittle Edina, hurting her feelings.  In time, Amanda and Eliza succeed in influencing many of the girls to dislike Edina, once again.

Billie Bradley and the School Mystery
Billie was helpless, although she flung an arm about Edina.
Billie devises a plan that will boost Edina's confidence and give the other girls reason to trust her once again.  However, Billie's plan has unexpected results, and Billie finds herself in the fight of her life to defend Edina against serious accusations.
#9 Billie Bradley Winning the Trophy
       Or, Scoring Against Big Odds
Life at Three Towers Hall is difficult because the old janitor's successor is lazy and refuses to keep the fire lit in the furnace.  Billie takes matters into her own hands by confronting the lazy new janitor, Pete Doolittle, about the furnace.  The man responds in a surly fashion but defiantly tells Billie that she will have a huge fire from that point on.

Unfortunately, the furnace explodes the next day, causing classes to be canceled.  Billie is consumed with guilt, since she feels partly to blame for the mishap.  Some good does come from the incident; the entire school is headed south to stay at Camp Red Wing, where the girls will continue their studies while the furnace at Three Towers Hall is fixed.

The girls enjoy their trip south, where the weather is much warmer.  Camp Red Wing is a delightful place, and the girls quickly settle into their new routine.

Billie Bradley Winning the Trophy
Amanda spurted forward—but Billie spurted just a little faster.
Billie is plagued by worries in what should be a carefree time.  Billie spots Pete Doolittle, who blames Billie for the loss of his job, in the town near Camp Red Wing.  Billie fears that Doolittle has followed her in an attempt to seek revenge.
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