Flemish Writer. His youth spent at his father's soup kitchen and later at a home for sailors would provide Baekelmans endless source material on the working class and life at port. He began his education at a local primary school and after a move to Handelslei, he continued as a pupil at the Royal Atheneum in Antwerp. Employed first as a city clerk, he eventually became Antwerp's main librarian, a position he held until his retirement. In 1900, he became editor of the magazine "Alvoorder." By 1901, he began to publish regularly, his first short stories being "Marieke van Nijmegen" and "From gray mists". In 1904, the release of "De Deelaer in de weidsche stat", was intended it to be part of a trilogy on the port of Antwerp. The other two volumes would not be written. He was co-founder of the "Vereeniging van Vlaamsche Letterkundigen" and editor of the magazine "Awakening." In 1911, he published a study of the 17th century Amsterdam poet, Willem Fockenbroch. He continued his review of 17th and 18th century poets in the publication "Oubolliege poetess."Tillie", considered by many to be his best work, was published in 1912. It is a poignant and endearing tale about fate and desolation of a young girl. During World War I, three more stories were written. "The Wheel of Adventure" a time travel novel appeared in 1933. He was co-founder of the National Copyright Association, predecessor of the Archives and Museum for Flemish Cultural Life and the Flemish Association for Library Services. Baekelmans was also chairman of the Association of Flemish Literature. He was also named to the Royal Academy of Dutch language and literature. Despite working at a library, he was a proliferate writer. His body of work includes prose, novels, novellas, short stories, magazine articles, studies, essays and anthologies. After his death, the Lode Baekelmans Prize was created.