<P> Maria Augusta von Trapp ( née Kutschera ; 26 January 1905 -- 28 March 1987 ) , also known as Baroness von Trapp , was the stepmother and matriarch of the Trapp Family Singers . She wrote The Story of the Trapp Family Singers which was published in 1949 . The story served as the inspiration for the 1956 West German film The Trapp Family , which in turn inspired the Broadway musical The Sound of Music ( 1959 ) and the 1965 film of the same name . </P>
the real story of the von trapp family book
The Story of the Trapp Family Singers