Ticknor and Fields
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Publishing |
| Founded | 1832 |
| Founder | William Davis Ticknor, James T. Fields |
| Defunct | 1878 (merged) |
| Fate | Merged with Henry Oscar Houghton's firm to form Houghton, Osgood, and Co. |
| Headquarters | Boston , United States |
| Products | Books, periodicals (including The Atlantic Monthly, North American Review) |
Ticknor and Fields was an American publishing house based in Boston, established in 1832. It was responsible for releasing works by leading 19th-century writers including Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry James, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Henry David Thoreau, and Mark Twain. The company also played a key role in issuing early editions of The Atlantic Monthly and North American Review.
The enterprise derived its name from its founder, William Davis Ticknor, and his apprentice-turned-partner, James T. Fields. Over time, the partnership evolved with additions such as James R. Osgood. Financial difficulties culminated in a merger in 1878 with the publishing firm of Henry Oscar Houghton, forming the basis for the contemporary Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. The Ticknor and Fields brand was briefly revived as an imprint between 1979 and 1989.
Early years
In 1832, William Davis Ticknor together with John Allen opened Ticknor and Allen, a bookstore located at Boston’s Old Corner Bookstore. Early in its operation, apprentice James T. Fields joined the firm and became a partner in 1845 alongside John Reed, prompting a rebranding to Ticknor, Reed, and Fields. Following Reed’s retirement in 1854, the company adopted the name Ticknor and Fields, establishing a strong reputation in the market.
The company broadened its scope to include publishing significant periodicals such as the Atlantic Monthly and North American Review. In a pioneering move in 1842, Ticknor became the first American publisher to compensate foreign authors, beginning with Alfred Tennyson. The publisher’s catalog featured prominent literary figures like Charles Dickens, Horatio Alger, Lydia Maria Child, Oliver Wendell Holmes, and James Russell Lowell, securing its competitive edge within American literary circles.
Serving both as headquarters and a literary gathering place, the Old Corner Bookstore became a cultural center for writers. The company’s operational model capitalized on Ticknor’s expertise in finance and production alongside Fields’ management of author relations and social networking. During this era, Ticknor and Fields formed a strategic alliance with Riverside Press, established by Henry Oscar Houghton in 1852, which later influenced structural changes that led to their eventual merger.
After Ticknor
In spring 1864, Ticknor accompanied Nathaniel Hawthorne on a health retreat but contracted pneumonia and passed away on April 10, 1864. His son, Howard M. Ticknor, assumed control of the business after his father’s death. As the company expanded beyond the Old Corner Bookstore location, Fields sold the retail operation in November 1864 and moved the publishing activities to 124 Tremont Street. The firm began issuing Our Young Folks, edited by Howard M. Ticknor before his retirement shortly thereafter. In 1868, the company was reorganized under the name Fields, Osgood, & Co., with Benjamin Holt Ticknor becoming a partner in 1870.
On January 1, 1871, Fields retired to pursue writing full-time; his partners acquired his interest for $120,000 and renamed the firm James R. Osgood & Co.. Under Osgood’s direction—who considered Fields a mentor—the company attracted distinguished authors such as Thomas Bailey Aldrich, Bret Harte, William Dean Howells, Henry James, and Sarah Orne Jewett, enhancing its market standing and broadening its influential literary catalog.
Final period
The company expanded its operations by adopting heliotype printing techniques, launching several periodicals, and establishing an office in New York City. Nevertheless, financial strains compelled Osgood and B. H. Ticknor to liquidate certain assets, including numerous stereotype plates. By December 1878, they combined forces with Hurd & Houghton to create Houghton, Osgood, and Co., with Henry Oscar Houghton joining as a partner. This collaboration continued until 1880, when Osgood departed to found a new iteration of J. R. Osgood and Company. Meanwhile, Houghton's firm, renamed Houghton, Mifflin, and Co., maintained control over the Ticknor and Fields backlist rights. In 1885, Benjamin Holt Ticknor assumed leadership of the second J. R. Osgood and Co., renaming it Ticknor and Company; this entity operated until 1889 before merging into Houghton, Mifflin, and Co., which officially adopted the name Houghton Mifflin Company in 1908.
Twentieth-century resurgence
The Ticknor and Fields imprint was brought back by Houghton Mifflin in 1979. Chester Kerr held the editor position until 1984, after which Corlies Smith took over until 1989.
Further reading
- Fiske, John. (1889). Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography, New York: D. Appleton and Company
- Ticknor, Caroline. (1913). Hawthorne and His Publisher, Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company – via Internet Archive
External links
- American National Biography Online, retrieved June 25, 2008
- The LUCILE Project, retrieved June 25, 2008
- Ticknor and Fields listing at Biblio.com
- Ticknor and Fields records, 1839–1881, Houghton Library, Harvard University