Orphaned by the hurricane that wrecked Galveston, Texas, in September 1900, aspiring photojournalist Donald Brown has all but abandoned hope of learning who his parents might have been. He exploits what most consider a handicap: his nearsightedness. With extraordinary close vision he discovers clues to his origins in the photo of himself as an infant. He helps find a missing photographer by analyzing film from a damaged camera, and he gains the friendship of a young woman in distress. Donald's quest begins on September 8, 1918, anniversary of the Great Storm. War in Europe drags on, and he must soon register for the draft. Meanwhile, his friend Jake needs help finding a news photographer who is missing after an assignment in Galveston. Jake, a mercurial and ambitious womanizer, has ties to the island's nascent mafia.

Donald finds himself more involved as clues point to a possible murder. When Donald's new friend, Clara, reveals a cache of photos that survived the storm, he discovers both the tragedy of his family and the source of his passion for photography. Maude Brown's Baby is the first in a series of historical mysteries that trace the life and career of Donald Brown.