Known as Fitzgerald's first published work, "The Mystery of the Raymond Mortgage" was written by Fitzgerald in June of 1909 and saw publication in the St. Paul Academy Now and Then magazine in October of that same year. Scott was only 13 years old at the time of its writing and the fledgling effort shows the influence of the popular mystery writers of the time, including Doyle and Poe. Although complete sets of Now and Then do exist, "The Mystery of the Raymond Mortgage" would most likely have remained a mysterious footnote in Fitzgerald's bibliography, were it not for Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine. Exactly how, and why, the story resurfaced some 50 years after its initial publication is not known, but the editors of EQMM included the story in their March 1960 edition. From there it was also reprinted in Ellery Queen's 15th Mystery Annual: an event that marked the first book publication of the story, some 20 years after Fitzgerald's death.
