Moses Polock
Moses Polock | |
|---|---|
| Born | Template:Birth date Philadelphia, United States |
| Died | August 16, 1903 (aged 86) |
| Occupation(s) | Publisher, bookseller |
| Known for | First American bookseller to focus solely on rare books; oldest active publisher and bookseller in the U.S. at time of death |
Moses Polock (May 14, 1817 – August 16, 1903) was a Jewish-American publisher recognized as the first bookseller in the United States to focus solely on rare books. At the time of his passing, he held the distinction of being the nation's eldest bibliophile.
Early life
Polock was born in Philadelphia as the fourth child among twelve siblings to Hyman Polock and Rebecca Barnett, both originally from Amsterdam. The family lineage extended back to Poland before immigrating to America in the early 1800s. His parents married in London in 1811 and relocated to the U.S. by 1813, with financial backing from Rebecca’s uncle Aaron Levy. Levy was a notable Pennsylvania merchant and a key financier for the Continental Congress during the Revolutionary War, as well as the founder of Aaronsburg, Pennsylvania.
Hyman Polock pursued a career as a jeweler and played a significant role within Philadelphia’s Jewish community. He contributed to founding important organizations such as the Hebrew Society for Visitation of Sick and Mutual Assistance (established 1813), where he served as president, and was also instrumental in creating and directing the Hebrew Education Society (1847).
Career
Following his education at preparatory schools, Moses Polock enrolled at the Franklin Institute in 1828. By age fourteen, he began his career as a clerk at McCarty & Davis, a Philadelphia bookstore established in 1780. Initially focused on children’s literature, the firm evolved into wholesale publishing of British plays, Shakespearean works, and legal texts. Polock remained with the company for two decades, rising to chief business officer. Upon William McCarty’s retirement and Thomas Davis’s death in 1850, Polock was named executor of Davis’s estate and received sufficient capital to acquire the business. He rebranded it under his own name and moved operations to 406 Commerce Street, selling much of the previous inventory while retaining select items for his new venture.
As a publisher, Polock produced editions spanning fiction, drama, and general literature, including updated versions of Pike's Arithmetic and Oliver Goldsmith’s A History of the Earth, and Animated Nature. In 1857, he released the inaugural collected edition of Charles Brockden Brown’s writings entitled The first American Novelist. During this period, Polock emerged as America’s pioneer dealer specializing exclusively in antiquarian books, especially Americana. His expertise in early Pennsylvania history made him an invaluable contact for bibliographers and historians alike.
Among Polock’s distinguished clientele were James Lenox, founder of the Lenox Library; John Carter Brown, whose collection became the foundation of the John Carter Brown Library at Brown University; George Brinley; and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. His shop regularly attracted notable literary figures such as James Fenimore Cooper, William Cullen Bryant, Noah Webster, Herman Melville, and historian George Bancroft. Polock also had ties to poet Edgar Allan Poe, who visited his store in 1835. Legend has it that Poe sold remaining copies of Tamerlane and Other Poems to Polock in exchange for a drink.
In 1895, Polock conducted an auction featuring approximately fifty volumes printed by Benjamin Franklin, drawing considerable interest. His nephew, A. S. W. Rosenbach, played a supporting role during this event.
Collecting
Throughout his lifetime, Polock amassed several distinguished book collections, notably including that of Henry Hope Reed, who tragically died in the SS Arctic disaster of 1854. His library also contained the Roxborough Club volumes, a rare assembly of early English reprints, along with an esteemed Washingtoniana collection. Although engaged in the book trade, Polock was hesitant to part with his treasured books, particularly in his later years. William Brotherhead observed that Polock rarely attempted to sell books and often set unrealistic prices, spending much of his time alone in his shop and interacting only with dedicated collectors. Due to his reserved disposition, much of the narrative surrounding booksellers and publishers from his era remains undocumented. An obituary characterized him as "more a lover of books than a dealer," reluctant to let go of his volumes. Many years after his passing, the Libraries Advisory Committee at the University of Michigan noted that Polock "rarely sold a book at any price without subsequently regretting the sale."
Personal life
Polock remained unmarried and had no offspring. He was a lifelong member of Congregation Mikveh Israel, where he held the distinction of being its eldest seat-holder at the time of his death and was possibly the oldest native-born Jewish resident in Philadelphia. Additionally, he was affiliated with both the Freemasons and Odd Fellows. His youngest sister, Isabella, was the mother of A. S. W. Rosenbach, who began working in Polock’s bookstore at age nine in 1885. It was there that Rosenbach honed critical skills for his future career as an antiquarian bookseller, such as book appraisal, bibliographic research, and engaging with collectors.
Death
Polock passed away on August 16, 1903, after a four-week illness at the home of his sister Isabella Rosenbach in Philadelphia. At the time of his death, he was recognized as the oldest active publisher and bookseller in the United States. He was interred at Mount Sinai Cemetery alongside his parents.
Having left no will, a significant portion of Polock’s collection was sold at auction on March 9–10, 1904, by Stanislaus Vincent Henkels at Davis & Harvey's auction house in Philadelphia. Among the notable lots were:
- A copy of The Aitken Bible, known as the first English Bible printed on American soil.
- An original manuscript penned by John Heckewelder.
- Seven volumes from George Washington’s personal library, purchased during an 1876 sale.
- Correspondence addressed to John Hancock from prominent American and British figures involved in the American Revolution.
- The Washington Letter discussing the exchange involving Lord Cornwallis and a survey related to part of Mount Vernon.
- Ivory miniatures depicting author Charles Brockden Brown and his spouse.
Isabella Rosenbach and her brother Philip funded most of the auction’s acquisitions, including significant Americana and early children’s literature. These purchases established the core inventory for their enterprise, The Rosenbach Company. Subsequently, Rosenbach sold several George Washington rarities from Polock’s collection to financier J. P. Morgan.