Wanda Gág died of lung cancer on June 27, 1946, at her home 'Tumble Timbers' in New Jersey, aged 53.
Wanda Gág died on June 27, 1946, at the age of 53, at her home known as 'Tumble Timbers' near Milford, New Jersey. She succumbed to lung cancer after a period of declining health, having continued to write, illustrate, and work on translations of the Brothers Grimm fairy tales until close to the end of her life.
By the time of her death, Gág had authored and illustrated numerous acclaimed children's books beyond Millions of Cats, including The ABC Bunny (1933), a Newbery Honor and Caldecott Honor book, and Nothing at All (1941), a Caldecott Honor book. She had also built a respected career as a fine artist, exhibiting prints and drawings that captured rural American life with a distinctive, rhythmic modernist style influenced by her immigrant heritage.
Her death marked the end of a career that had fundamentally reshaped the American picture book, moving it away from moralistic, static illustration toward dynamic visual storytelling that trusted children's imaginations. Her papers, artwork, and legacy continue to be preserved by institutions such as the University of Minnesota and the Wanda Gág House in New Ulm, Minnesota, which maintains her childhood home as a historic site and museum honoring her contributions to American art and literature.