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D. Appleton & Company

From Alfawiki
D. Appleton & Company
Company typePrivate
IndustryPublishing
Founded1825
FounderDaniel Appleton
Defunct1933
FateMerged with The Century Company to form Appleton-Century Company
Headquarters
New York City
,
United States
ProductsBooks, magazines, scientific and medical texts, Spanish-language editions

D. Appleton & Company was a prominent American publishing house founded by Daniel Appleton, who initially sold books through a general store before issuing the company's inaugural publication in 1831. Over time, the firm broadened its catalog to encompass literature, scientific works, and medical texts, featuring authors such as Herbert Spencer, John Tyndall, Thomas Huxley, and Charles Darwin. It gained recognition for producing cost-effective scientific materials and Spanish-language editions aimed primarily at the South American readership, including titles by Rafael Pombo. The company also held a significant role in publishing American historical works and belles lettres. On June 2, 1933, it combined with The Century Company to establish the Appleton-Century Company.

Timeline

  • 1813 Transitioned operations from Haverhill to Boston; commenced importing books from England
  • 1825 Relocated to New York City; entered the book trade in partnership with brother-in-law Jonathan Leavitt
  • 1831 Released its first publication: Crumbs from the Master's Table authored by William Mason
  • 1848 Founder Daniel Appleton stepped down; his son William Henry Appleton alongside his brothers took over management
  • 1849 Death of Daniel Appleton
  • 1857 Became a pioneer in subscription-based publishing as a trade publisher in New York
  • 1869 Initiated publication of Appleton's Journal
  • 1872 Debuted Popular Science Monthly and the International Scientific Series, edited by Edward L. Youmans
  • 1875 Issued memoirs of General William Tecumseh Sherman, one of the earliest Civil War general memoirs
  • 1881 Moved headquarters to Bond Street, New York City; renamed Appleton's Journal to Appleton's Magazine
  • 1890 Helped establish the American Book Company consortium which included D. Appleton & Co.
  • 1894 Published Songs of the Soil by Frank Lebby Stanton
  • 1900 Faced bankruptcy; divested Popular Science; reorganized under Joseph H. Sears from Harper's
  • 1905 Changed Appleton's Magazine title to Appleton's Booklovers Magazine
  • 1919 Appointed J. W. Hiltman as company president
  • 1924 Acquired Stewart and Kidd, a firm founded in 1914
  • 1931 Released I Sailed with Chinese Pirates by Aleko E. Lilius
  • 1933 United with The Century Company to form Appleton-Century Company
  • 1945 Sold off hymn book division to Revell Publishing
  • 1948 Merged with F. S. Crofts Co. (established in 1924), resulting in Appleton-Century-Crofts

Publishing highlights

  • The Flag-ship: Or, A Voyage Around the World in the United States Frigate Columbia... by Fitch Waterman Taylor, 1840
  • The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane, published in 1895
  • Uncle Remus: His Songs and His Sayings by Joel Chandler Harris, first issued in 1880
  • First U.S. edition of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, released in 1865
  • Appletons' Cyclopædia of Biography, edited by Francis L. Hawks, published in 1856
  • Six-volume Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography, edited by James Grant Wilson and John Fiske, issued in 1887
  • Appleton's Railroad and Steamboat Guide, launched in 1847
  • Sixteen-volume New American Cyclopedia, published between 1857 and 1863; updated as American Cyclopedia, from 1873 to 1876
  • Henry George’s Progress and Poverty, released in 1880
  • Annual editions of Annual Cyclopedia, spanning from 1861 through 1901
  • Eight-volume Johnson's Universal Cyclopaedia, edited by Charles Kendall Adams and published in 1893 (rights acquired from Alvin J. Johnson & Co.)
  • Twelve-volume Universal Cyclopaedia, published in 1900 and later renamed Universal Cyclopaedia and Atlas, edited by Charles Kendall Adams and Rossiter Johnson
  • The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia, produced between 1889 and 1891; followed by the New Century Dictionary, issued from 1927 until about 1963
  • Picturesque America, authored by William Cullen Bryant, published in 1872
  • A complete English dictionary released in an unabridged edition in 1859
  • Collected works of Jonathan Edwards (1703–1758), published in 1834
  • Scientific publications authored by Charles Darwin (1809–1882)
  • Medical texts including Diseases of the Heart and Arterial System and Diseases of the Lungs by Dr. Robert Hall Babcock (1903, 1907)
  • Memoirs of General William Tecumseh Sherman (1820–1891)
  • Authorized fifteen-volume editions of Rudyard Kipling’s writings, issued in 1899
  • Literary works penned by Henry James (1843–1916)
  • Artistic publications featuring Edith Wharton’s creations (1862–1937)
  • Architectural volumes showcasing Stanford White’s work (died 1906)
  • Gems of British Art, published in 1857
  • T.H. Huxley’s scientific contributions, issued in 1880
  • A series titled From the Manger to the Throne, authored by Rev. T. DeWitt Talmage, D.D., spanning from 1880 to 1889
  • Ulrich Bonnell Phillips’ study titled American Negro Slavery, published in 1918
  • Jefferson Davis’ work on the Confederacy, titled The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government
  • A speculative narrative called A Journey in Other Worlds, written by John Jacob Astor

See also

External links

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