Michael L. Baumann was a professor of English at California State University, Chico from the 1970s to the 1990s. His doctoral dissertation on B. Traven was published in 1976 by University of New Mexico Press under the title B. Traven: An Introduction. In later years, he submitted the manuscript of his book Mr. Traven, I presume? to the UCR Library's Special Collections Department for publication.

B. Traven was the pseudonym for an internationally famous writer who guarded his identity with jealousy and determination throughout his life, creating one of the greatest literary puzzles of the 20th century. Other names he went by in his lifetime are Traven Torsvan, Hal Croves, and Ret Marut. His twelve novels, the best known of which are The Death Ship and the Treasure of the Sierra Madre, and many short stories have been translated into numerous languages. Films have been made of his the Treasure of the Sierra Madre, White Rose, Macario, The Death Ship, and Rebellion of the Hanged. He died in March 1969 in Mexico City, Mexico.