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J.B. Lippincott Company records
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Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]1300 Locust Street, Philadelphia, PA, 19107
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.
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Joshua Ballinger Lippincott was born in Juliustown, Burlington County, New Jersey, on 18 March 1813. As a teenager, Lippincott entered the book trade as an employee of David Clark, book binder and bookseller, whose stand was at the southwest corner of North 4th Street and Race Street. About 1831, Clark’s business failed, and Lippincott was put in charge of the business at the request of its creditors. For several years in the mid-1830s, the firm traded as Clark and Lippincott, but in 1836, Lippincott established himself in business as J. B. Lippincott and Company, Booksellers and Stationers, at Clark’s old address. Over the following decades, the firm became an established publisher of books, including Bibles and religious texts.
In late 1849, Lippincott purchased the extensive book-jobbing and stationery business of Grigg, Elliott and Company, a firm that traced its origins back to Warner and Johnson’s partnership of 1792, and together with the junior partners of the older firm reorganized as Lippincott, Grambo and Company on 1 January 1850. This firm subsequently conducted business at both the old address as well as Grigg, Elliott’s block at 20 North Fourth Street. Upon the retirement of Henry Grambo in 1855, the firm was again reorganized as J. B. Lippincott and Company, and continued to trade under this name until its incorporation as a private company, J. B. Lippincott Compnay, in 1885.
Joshua B. Lippincott died on 5 January 1886. The company passed in equal parts to his three sons, Craige, Walter, and J. Bertram. Eldest son Craige took over as president of the firm and guided the company until his sudden death on 7 April 1911. The board then elected J. Bertram Lippincott as president, and he served in this capacity until his elevation to chairman of the board in 1926. At that time, Joseph Wharton Lippincott, son of J. Bertram Lippincott, was chosen as the fourth president of the firm. Succeeding generations of the Lippincott family remained involved in the management of the company into the 2000s.
In 1861, the firm acquired a lot at 715 – 717 Market Street, where it proceeded to build an extensive book publishing, importing, retailing, wholesaling, and manufacturing business. The firm moved to this location in March 1863 and by 1871 occupied two large, connected buildings that stretched back to Filbert Street – the retail and wholesaling departments and publishing offices in front, facing Market Street, and the manufacturing establishment in the rear. These buildings were gutted by fire in the early morning hours of 29 November 1899, and all stock on hand was destroyed. Electroplates stored in the vaults were spared, and some records also survived. Temporary operations were set up at the nearby Continental Hotel. By August 1901, the firm had moved to a new building at 227 East Washington Square, where it remained until its removal in 1999 to its current offices in the Penn Mutual Building at 530 Walnut Street.
At the end of the 19th century, the firm began to concentrate on its publishing and manufacturing activities. The retail book department was sold to Strawbridge and Clothier in 1897. Lit Brothers department store purchased the stationery and fancy goods department along with the Market Street storefront in 1898.
The firm first opened a branch office in New York City in 1871 and in 1875 established the London Agency, which was finally closed in 1955. A branch office was established in 1897 in Montreal, where it operated until a 1966 move to Toronto. The company had an office in Chicago by 1912, and in 1918, this branch took over management of the school and college textbook lines under the direction of Clarence W. Taber. In 1936, a trade editorial office was opened in New York City at 250 Park Avenue (later moved to 521 Fifth Avenue), and Lippincott purchased two New York publishing firms: Carrick and Evans, Inc. in 1940 and Frederick A. Stokes Company in 1941. The company went public in 1972 and was acquired in 1978 by Harper and Row, which combined it with Thomas Y. Crowell, another Harper subsidiary; the new firm’s books were published under the imprint of Lippincott and Crowell until 1981. In 1990, the company was acquired by Wolters Kluwer, which merged it with Raven Publishers and then, in 1998, with Williams and Wilkins to form Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, which continues in business today as a publisher of medical texts, reference books, and journals.
Over its long history, the Lippincott firm has published many works of interest, covering a number of subjects and genres. During the nineteenth century, the firm was particularly noted for its reference works, expensive to produce, including the many editions of Lippincott’s Pronouncing Gazetteer (first published 1855), the American editions of Chambers’s Encyclopedia, A Dictionary of Universal Knowledge for the People (first published 1861), the Universal Dictionary of Biography and Mythology (1870), and all but the first volume of Samuel Austin Allibone’s A Critical Dictionary of English Literature (1858-1871). It also published many standard, multi-volume sets of the works of important American and British authors, as well as such works as Henry Rowe Schoolcraft’s six-volume History of the Indian Tribes of the United States (1851-1857) and the first 27 volumes of Horace Howard Furness’s edition of A New Variorum Edition of Shakespeare (1871-1955). From its early years, medical publications formed an important element of the firm’s list. In 1878, the firm issued A Hand-Book of Nursing, the first commercially published nursing handbook in the United States. While these works came to predominate during the twentieth century, the company remained a major publisher of trade books. Notable trade titles published during the mid-twentieth century include Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston in 1937 and five of her other early works (1934 – 1942). Lippincott also published Mary O’Hara’s My Friend Flicka in 1941, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird in 1960, and Thomas Pynchon’s first two books (1963, 1966).
In 1868 the firm launched Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine, which it continued to publish until 1914. A unique feature of this magazine was that it published the entire text of a novelette in each issue, including notably Arthur Conan Doyle’s “The Sign of the Four” (February 1890), Oscar Wilde’s “The Picture of Dorian Gray” (July 1890), and Rudyard Kipling’s “The Light that Failed” (January 1891). The firm also published a number of other periodicals, chiefly on medical subjects, notably the Annals of Surgery (beginning 1897). Lippincott published the American Journal of Nursing until 1913, when the American Nurses Association transferred the journal to Williams and Wilkins. Other periodicals published by Lippincott included the Motor Register, which it took over in 1907, and Child-Welfare.
The J. B. Lippincott Company records cover many aspects of the firm’s business from 1851 to 1988 (bulk 1880s – 1920s).
Series 1 (1851-1988) documents the activities of the publication department. Records include outgoing correspondence in letterpress volumes, incoming and outgoing correspondence in files, financial records, publication and copyright records, manuscripts, artwork, and proofs. The outgoing correspondence is in several chronologically overlapping runs, none of which are complete. Personal correspondence is not included, although individual letters often contain references to personal matters. Editorial and business content predominate. Of special note are the detailed letters from art director, Edward S. Holloway. (A great number of Holloway’s letters also appear in Series 5 with the manufacturing department correspondence.) Unfortunately, many early volumes have water damage. The five international letterbooks focus on imports, and Horace Ridings’ letters tend to include a modest social element. The correspondence files are chiefly incoming letters from authors with some copies of associated outgoing letters. Publication records include permissions to remainder and trade catalogs. There are a few miscellaneous manuscripts, typescripts, and proofs by authors such as Ouida, Arthur Applin, and Ford Madox Ford. The series concludes with original artwork. There is a large array of intricate anatomical drawings by Hermann Faber and his sons, Ludwig E. Faber and Erwin F. Faber, with a few by Louis P. Schmidt. A small group of trade book illustrations is predominantly by M. L. Kirk.
Series 2 (1869-1918) contains records relating to Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine and consists mostly of letterpress volumes of outgoing correspondence. Early correspondence for the magazine is included in the general correspondence of the publication department. Letters on advertising and subscriptions may be found in the manufacturing department letterbooks. Although the letters in this sequence are essentially business correspondence, managing editor J. M. Stoddart often touched on social matters in his writing, notably in his frequent letters to Julian Hawthorne (1886 – 1894). The editorial letterbook sequence begins in 1899 and ends in 1914, when the magazine was sold to McBride and Nast, and it is missing only one volume. The rest of this series contains an extensive set of manuscript records, including payment receipts and purchase and disposal cards. The manuscript payment records start in 1869, a year after publication began, and run through 1914. Manuscript purchase and disposal records document sales of rights through 1918. A small set of original cartoons concludes the series.
Series 3 (1893-1905) is a small series for Lippincott’s medical periodicals and is almost entirely outgoing advertising correspondence. One volume concerns advertising for International Medical Magazine (1891 – 1893). The remaining volumes are an uninterrupted sequence of six letterbooks from 1903 to 1905. There is one folder of copyrights for Annals of Surgery in 1901.
Series 4 (1875-1936) consists of correspondence to and from Lippincott’s London Agency, which was established in 1875. The outgoing letterbooks are arranged in three distinct runs. The first is general correspondence from 1875 to 1899. The second run is chiefly editorial and production matters and spans from 1899 to 1923. The last outgoing group of letterbooks relates primarily to imports, and these volumes run without interruption from 1894 to 1921. Incoming letters from London were bound into scrapbooks, and with the exception of one 1890 letter, the dates covered range from 1895 to 1936. Due to their condition, these scrapbook volumes have been disbound and placed into archival folder and boxes.
Series 5 (1899-1956) is composed of manufacturing department correspondence and record books almost exclusively from the 20th century. This department encompassed much more than its name suggests. Advertising and periodical subscriptions fell under the manufacturing umbrella and figured heavily in the correspondence. In addition to letters about layouts, printing, and production, subjects occasionally included personnel and labor matters, supply orders, and remittances. Many letters from art manager Edward S. Holloway appear in these books. The series is nearly complete for its date range. The record books are heterogeneous in terms of dates and content and include departmental sales books, stock and supply inventories, book production records, and a printing plate record book.
Series 6 (1882 - circa 1956) is a small series of heterogeneous sales-related records and documents. It contains outgoing correspondence regarding sales to the trade and sales to individuals. Also included are letterbooks of the educational department which concern sales to schools and colleges. A small number of ledgers, sales reports, and commission records make up the rest of the series.
Series 7 (1853-1958) relates to the activities of the business department, which handled the financial matters of the company. The records in this series consist of a few pressed letterbooks and a variety of account books and journals with dates ranging from 1853 to 1958. The early account books include Joshua B. Lippincott’s day book and the partners’ private cash ledger. Most of the volumes in this series date to the first half of the 20th century.
Series 8 (1881-1945) is a set of seven business and accounting record books for the Frederick A. Stokes Company, which was founded in 1881 as White and Stokes. Most records in this small series relate to sales, royalties, and manufacturing and predate the firm’s acquisition by the J. B. Lippincott Company in 1941.
Series 9 (1833-1967) consists primarily of Lippincott publications, including earlier iterations of the company and its predecessors, such as Lippincott, Grambo and Grigg and Elliott. The books are from many genres: fiction, nonfiction, educational, medical, manual, and commemorative. Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine is well represented through 1897.
Series 10 (1878-1988) contains a variety of miscellaneous items including a few photographs; a partial set of electrotype printing plates; some book catalogs, mostly from Lippincott successors (1961-1978); and unidentified letterbook indexes.
Particular strengths of the collection include correspondence to and from the firm’s London Agency, editorial correspondence for Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine, the manufacturing department letterbooks, and the early 20th century author correspondence files. The most frequently cited item is J. M. Stoddart’s international letterbook for Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine (Box 17 folder 15), which has letters to Oscar Wilde, Rudyard Kipling, and Arthur Conan Doyle.
Despite the size of the collection, there are some notable gaps. Aside from the London Agency letters, incoming correspondence is limited to the modest set of author files in Series 1. Internal correspondence only appears occasionally in the pressed letterbooks, often due to travel of the recipient, but the researcher would need to be aware of which correspondents were associated with the company. Sales records are especially under represented. Payroll records from the mid-twentieth century could be of interest to researchers, but the access restrictions on the most recent volume expire in 2033.
1. Publication Department (1851 - 1988)
A. Correspondence
B. Account books and other records
C. Miscellaneous publication records
2. Lippincott's Monthly Magazine (1869 - 1918)
A. Outgoing correspondence
B. Other records
C. Original artwork
3. Lippincott's medical periodicals (1893 - 1905)
A. Correspondence
B. Other records
4. Lippincott's London Agency (1875 - 1936)
A. Outgoing letters to Lippincott's London Agency
B. Incoming letters from Lippincott's London agency
5. Manufacturing Department (1899 - 1956)
A. Outgoing correspondence
B. Account books and other records
6. Sales Department (1882 - circa 1956)
A. Outgoing correspondence
B. Account books and other records
7. Business Department (1853 - 1958)
A. Outgoing correspondence
B. Account books and other records
8. Frederick A. Stokes Company ( 1881 - 1945)
9. Published Materials (1833 - 1967)
10. Miscellaneous (1878 - 1988)
Gift of Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, 2002 (accession number 2002.036). The donation was initiated on 11 August 1999 by an email from Joseph Wharton Lippincott III, president of Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, in light of the firm’s impending move from its offices at 227 Washington Square East to new facilities in the Penn Mutual Building, 530 Walnut Street. That fall 137 boxes of materials were received by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, which completed a “spot” inventory and sent a deed of gift to the donor on 24 January 2001. Discussions concerning an additional 3 boxes of material to be donated took place in March 2001, and the gift was finally accepted on 28 May 2002. On 12 August 2002, the receipt of an additional 4 boxes – “the last of the materials that Lippincott Williams and Wilkins currently had for donation” – was acknowledged. A stray volume labeled “Job Order Book” (volume 529) was added to the collection in August 2007, the gift of Eileen Wolfberg.
Many items in the collection are water damaged and have been cleaned for mold. Researchers with mold sensitivities should exercise caution when working with this collection.
Three volumes of incoming letters from Lippincott's London Agency (29 July 1904 to 17 February 1906, 26 November 1908 to 16 November 1909, and 20 November 1909 to 10 December 1910) are missing from the collection as of January 2020.
The contents of Box 17 folder 3 (correspondence with Ward, Lock and Co. regarding Arthur Applin’s The Woman Who Was Not) are missing as of October 2020.
The letters from Collection 4028 J. B. Lippincott letters have been integrated with the collection
A large portion of the published material, listed below, has been transferred to HSP's library.
Periodicals Note: Published by J. B. Lippincott Company unless otherwise noted.
American Journal of Nursing 6 (5) (February 1906).
American Practitioner 13 (9) (September 1962).
Annals of Surgery 2-7, 9-14, (1885-1991). St. Louis: J. H. Chambers and Company.
Annals of Surgery 15-17, 19-24 (1892-1896). Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.
Annals of Surgery 26-40, 41-48, 51-55, 59-67, 69-71, 73-75 (1897-1919).
Every Saturday (May-December 1871). Boston: James R. Osgood and Company.
International Clinics: A Quarterly of Clinical Lectures… (1891, 1892, 1896, 1904).
Pocket Magazine 2 (4-6), 3 (4-6), 4 (1-6), 5 (1-3), 7 (1-2, 5-6), 8 (1-4), 9 (3-5). New York: F. A. Stokes.
Transactions of the American Surgical Association 2-7, 47 (1885-1890, 1929)
Books
Abbott, Charles C. Recent Rambles or In Touch with Nature. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1892.
Josiah Allen’s Wife [pseud.]. Josiah’s Alarm and Abel Perry’s Funeral. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1895.
Anstey, F. The Pariah. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1889.
Bishop, Richard E. Bishop’s Birds. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1936.
Arthur, T. S. Who are Happiest? And Other Stories. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott, 1860.
Brown, John. Rab and His Friends. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1890.
Bryant, William Cullen. The Complete Works of Shakespeare, V (Tragedies). Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1896.
Burns, Robert. Complete Works of Robert Burns Including His Correspondence, Etc. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1867.
Carey, Rosa Nouchette. Merle’s Crusade. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1893.
Casserly, Patrick S. Complete System of Latin Prosody. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1858.
Choice Gems for the Home Circle. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company.
Clemens, Jeremiah. Mustang Gray: A Romance. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1858.
Comly’s Spelling and Reading Book. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo, and Company, 1853.
Corelli, Marie. The Sorrows of Satan, or the Strange Experience of One Geoffrey Tempest, Millionaire. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1896.
Crooks, G. R. and A. J. Schem. New Latin-English School Lexicon. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1858.
The Dew-Drop: A Tribute of Affection for MDCCCLIII. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo, 1853.
Glynn, Elinor. Man and Maid. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1922.
Goldsmith, Oliver. Vicar of Wakefield. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott, n. d.
Goodrich, Frank B. The Court of Napoleon, or Society under the First Empire... 3rd edition. New York: Derby and Jackson, 1863.
Goodrich, S. G. The Story of Alexander Selkirk. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo, 1854.
Grosland, Mrs. Newton. Hubert Freeth’s Prosperity: A Story. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1874.
Guthrie, G. J. Commentaries on the Surgery of the War in Portugal, Spain, France, and the Netherlands. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1862.
Haite, George C. ed. The Traveller. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1888.
Hale, Sara Josepha ed. The Poets’ Offering for 1850. Philadelphia: Grigg and Elliot, 1850.
Hart, John S. ed. The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for MDCCCLI. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo, 1851.
Hart, John S. ed. The Iris: An Illuminated Souvenir for MDCCCLIII. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo, 1853.
Hazlitt, William. Lectures on the English Poets. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, n. d.
Hazlitt, William, ed. The Works of Michael D. Montaigne; Comprising His Essays, Letters, and Journey Through Germany and Italy. 6th edition. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1860.
Hemans, Mrs. Felicia. The Poetical Works of Mrs. Felicia Hemans. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo, 1854.
Ingelow, Jean. The Poetical Works of Jean Ingelow, Including the Lady and Other Poems. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1881.
Irving, Washington. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1875.
Kautz, Captain August V. The Company Clerk: Showing How and When to Make All the Returns, Reports, Rolls, and Other Papers… Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1864.
King, Captain Charles. Under Fire. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1895.
Kingston, William H. G. Salt Water; or, the Sea Life and Adventures of Neil D’Arcy, the Midshipman. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1875.
Lee, Harper. After Harper Lee: To Kill a Mockingbird. 1969. Note: In Russian.
Lessons of the Holy Scripture to be Read at Morning and Evening Prayer… Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo, 1850.
Lewis, Elizabeth. The Princess and the Goblin. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1913.
Lippincott’s Popular Spelling Book. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1885.
Long, John Luther. Miss Cherry Blossom of Tokyo. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1895.
Lover, Samuel. The Low-Back’d Car. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1892.
Lynn, Escott. Blair of Balaclava: A Hero of the Light Brigade. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, undated.
Macleod, George H. B. Notes on the Surgery on the War in Crimea, with Remarks on the Treatment of Gunshot Wounds. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1862.
Maxwell, Samuel Steen. Labyrinth and Equilibrium. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1923.
Milman, Helen. The Little Ladies. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1892.
Patrick, J. N. Lessons in Language. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1898.
Pictorial History of the Russian War 1854-56, with Maps, Plans, and Wood Engravings. London: W and R Chambers Limited, 1856.
Power’s Graded Speller, Book 2. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1905.
Randolph, Mrs. Iris. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1882.
Read, Thomas Buchanan. The Closing Scene. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1887.
Reade, Charles. Peg Woffington: A Novel. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1869.
Rich, Louise Dickinson. We Took to the Woods. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott, 1942.
Seu Biblia Hebraica. 2nd edition. J. B. Lippincott Company, 1859.
Shakespeare, William. A New Variorum Edition of Shakespeare: Antony and Cleopatra. Edited by H. H. Furness. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1907.
Shakespeare, William. A New Variorum Edition of Shakespeare: King Lear. Edited by H. H. Furness. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1908.
Shakespeare, William. A New Variorum Edition of Shakespeare: Twelfth Night. Edited by H. H. Furness. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1901.
Shakespeare, William. A New Variorum Edition of Shakespeare: Much Ado About Nothing. 5th edition. Edited by H. H. Furness. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1927.
Shakespeare, William. A New Variorum Edition of Shakespeare: The Winter’s Tale. Edited by H. H. Furness. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1926.
Shakespeare, William. A New Variorum Edition of Shakespeare: Julius Caesar. Edited by H. H. Furness, Jr. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1913.
Shakespeare, William. A New Variorum Edition of Shakespeare: King John. Edited by H. H. Furness Jr. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1919.
A Short Exposition of Dr. Martin Luther’s Small Catechism. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1913.
Spyri, Joanna. Heidi. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1915.
Sterne, Laurence. A Sentimental Journey Through France and Italy. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1891.
Swedenborg, Emanuel. Heaven Its Wonders and Hell, From Things Heard and Seen. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1897.
Thomas, Joseph. Universal Pronouncing Dictionary of Biography and Mythology, Volume 1 “A-Des.” Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1873.
Thomas, Joseph. Universal Pronouncing Dictionary of Biography and Mythology, Volume 2 “Des-Men.” Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1873.
Thomas, Joseph. Universal Pronouncing Dictionary of Biography and Mythology, Volume 3 “Men-Zyp.” Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1873.
Thomas, Joseph. Universal Pronouncing Dictionary of Biography and Mythology. Revised edition. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1890.
Thomas, Joseph. Universal Pronouncing Dictionary of Biography and Mythology. Revised edition. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1915.
Train, Elizabeth Phipps. The Autobiography of a Professional Beauty. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1895.
Von Tautphoeus, Baroness Jemima. At Odds. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1863.
Von Tautphoeus, Baroness Jemima. The Initials: A Story of Modern Life. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo. 1852.
Von Tautphoeus, Baroness Jemima. Quits; a Novel. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1858.
Walker, John. Elements of Elocution and Oratory. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo and Company, 1852.
Wanostrocht, N. Recueil Choisi de Trait Historiques et de Contes Moraux. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1868.
Webber, C. W. Tales of the Southern Border. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo, 1855.
Weed, Clarence M. Seeing Nature First. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1913.
Wetherell, Elizabeth. Queechy. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1860.
Wetherell, Elizabeth. The Wide, Wide World. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1858.
White, Caroline Earle. A Modern Agrippa. Patience Barker: A Tale of Old Nantucket. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1893.
White, Charles I. The Genius of Christianity; or the Spirit and Beauty of the Christian Religion. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1856.
Willson, Marcious. Lippincott’s Fifth Reader. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1883.
Wister, Mrs. A. L. From Hand to Hand, a Novel, from the German of Golo Raimund. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1882.
Wister, Mrs. A. L. In the Schillingscourt: A Romance, from the German of E. Marlitt. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1880.
Wyatt, Thomas. Gems From the Sacred Mine; or Holy Thoughts Upon Sacred Subjects. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo, and Company, 1851.
Wyss, Johann. The Swiss Family Robinson or Adventures in a Desert Land. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1867.
People
- Bacon, Ellis W., 1874-1961.
- Faber, Erwin F., 1866-1939.
- Faber, Hermann, 1832-1913.
- Faber, Ludwig E., 1855-1913.
- Furness, Horace Howard, 1833-1912.
- Holloway, Edward Stratton, 1859-1939.
- Kirk, Maria Louise, 1860-1938.
- Lippincott, Craige, 1846-1911.
- Lippincott, J. B. (Joshua Ballinger), 1813-1886.
- Lippincott, J. Bertram (Joshua Bertram), 1857-1940.
- Lippincott, Joseph Wharton, 1887-1976.
- Stoddart, Joseph Marshall, 1845-1921.
Subject
- Books and Bookselling--19th Century
- Medical illustration
- Medical Publications--19th century
- Medical Publications--20th century
- Medical publishing
- Publishers and Publishing--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia--19th century
- Publishers and Publishing--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia--20th century
- Publishing--Limited Editions
- Publishing--Periodicals--19th century
- Publishing--United States--Periodicals--Early 20th Century
- Publisher
- Historical Society of Pennsylvania
- Finding Aid Author
- Finding aid prepared by Michael Winship; revised and expanded by Sara H. Nash.
- Finding Aid Date
- , 2007, 2021.
- Sponsor
- Processing and conservation of the J.B. Lippincott Company records was made possible through the generous support of the National Archives’ National Historical Publications and Records Commission, the Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, and Wolters Kluwer.
- Access Restrictions
-
Five volumes of payroll records in Series 7b, spanning the years 1943-1958, are closed for 75 years from the date of creation. These include Volumes 599-603. See Series 7B for details.
Collection Inventory
The publication department formed the foundation of the company and accounts for the largest portion of the collection and its earliest correspondence. Over time, records for other departments began to be kept separately from the publication department. Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine started a dedicated set of letterbooks in 1886. Sales department correspondence dates to 1884. Extant records for the manufacturing department and business department date to 1899, possibly a result of the November 1899 fire.
The outgoing correspondence of the publication department is comprised of several groups of letterpress volumes and spans the 1860s to the 1930s, bulk 1870s to 1920s. Some volumes lack indexes. Several unidentified indexes are included in Series 10.
The first group, Volumes 1 – 104, is comprised of general outgoing letters (1870 – 1915), (but see Volume 15 for a few letters from the 1860s). During the 1870s and 1880s, the letters addressed many aspects of the Lippincott firm’s business, but mainly focused on editorial matters relating to its book and periodical publications. These letters are signed or initialed by many people, including Albert Coleman, J. Berg Esenwein, John S. Hewitt, Edward S. Holloway, Henry H. Kimball, Joshua B. Lippincott, J. Bertram Lippincott, Walter Lippincott, John N. Rawlings, William S. Walsh, and Churchill Williams. Several volumes are labeled as “Mr. Williams’ and Mr. Rawlings’ Letterbook.”
The second series, Volumes 105 – 218, is comprised of general outgoing letters (1899 – 1923). Ellis W. Bacon is a primary correspondent, and several volumes are labeled “Mr. E. W. Bacon.” Others letter writers include A. Adams, Thomas P. Bacon, Alfred C. Balch, Ralph Bicknell, M. Blair, Louise R. Bull, J. Berg Esenwein, Rupert S. Holland, Edward S. Holloway, Robert S. Ingersoll, W. M. Lednum, Craige Lippincott, Joseph Wharton Lippincott, Joshua Bertram Lippincott, John N. Rawlings, Horace S. Ridings, Walter S. Slack, and Olive M. Sudders.
Rounding out the publication department’s domestic letterbooks are two volumes from Ralph Bicknell (Volumes 219 - 220), spanning 1909 to 1915, and one volume (221) from the Dictionary Department (1905 – 1906), signed by H. G. Emery.
There is comparatively little incoming correspondence. A small number of letters from the second half of the 19th century was collected by Horace S. Ridings. Loose incoming and outgoing author 20th century correspondence is split into two groups. The first group was originally labeled “Permanent Records,” and these files are arranged chronologically by year (1903 – 1917). A few business correspondents are included. The second group of letters (1922 – 1936) is arranged alphabetically by author and chronologically by year. Retail sales reports which were included with these files have been grouped with similar records in Series 6b.
Five volumes of international correspondence (1877 – 1921) relate chiefly to imports. A few letters to domestic correspondents are included. Many letters in Volume 222 are written by Henry H. Kimball, who upon his death in 1894 was succeeded by Horace S. Ridings. The remaining volumes contain letters by Horace S. Ridings and Thomas H. Clagett.
This subseries contains a wide variety of publication-related accounting records which span almost 100 years. Two copyright ledgers and eight general and publication ledgers range from 1851 to 1944 (incomplete). There is one volume of foreign invoices for 1895 to 1899. Two authors’ manuscript books cover the periods of 1882 to 1886 and 1917 to 1925. Also present are copyright records (1900 – 1917 and 1924 – 1930), one volume of new publications records (1889 – 1893), and publication orders placed by Horace S. Ridings, Ellis W. Bacon, John N. Rawlings, and others (1900 – 1949). The subseries also includes one volume of royalty account records (1946 – 1947) and one file of internal permissions to remainder (1922 – 1930).
Other records of the publication department include many trade catalogs (general and medical) and a few original manuscripts, typescripts, and artwork. Many of the children’s book catalogs contain artwork reproduced from the publications. Also in this subseries is a partial set of proofs for a comprehensive English dictionary, which was the pet project of J. Bertram Lippincott. In 1906, after the investment of 14 years and $400,000, J. Bertram Lippincott opted to shelve the project, citing the effects on his health and the projected cost of completion. Copy had been prepared through “G” and proofs printed through “esteem.”
J. B. Lippincott published Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine from 1868 through November 1914, when the magazine was sold to McBride, Nast and Company of New York. It ceased publication in 1916. This series spans from 1886 to 1923 and includes extensive correspondence and manuscript records. Also present are two folders of original artwork and captions.
Letters regarding the earliest years of Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine are included in the general series of outgoing correspondence of the publication department (Series 1A). Many letters regarding periodical subscriptions and advertising are included in the manufacturing department letter books (Series 5A). Outgoing general correspondence for Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine was separated from the publishing department starting in 1886 in two sequential runs of pressed letterbooks, a general numbered series first and a later series for the editorial department. The latter is missing only one volume. Some volumes lack indexes. Several unidentified indexes are included in Series 10.
The numbered series (1886 – 1899) contains the outgoing letters of Joseph Marshall Stoddart, managing editor (1886 – 1894). Others who signed letters in this series include Frederick M. Bird (editor), J. Bertram Lippinott, Lillian A. North, Charles E. Roberts, Henry C. Walsh, William S. Walsh, J. E. Winner, and an unidentified “M. S.”. Stoddart’s correspondence in this period includes letters to Walt Whitman and Oscar Wilde. When Stoddart left his position as managing editor in April 1894, this series of pressed letterbooks was continued by Alfred C. Balch and Charles E. Roberts, advertising manager. While Stoddart’s correspondence usually concerned editorial and management matters, Balch and Roberts showed a greater focus on business matters, such as subscriptions and advertising.
The editorial letterbooks (1899 – 1914) include outgoing letters from the following editors of Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine: Harrison S. Morris (January 1899 to May 1905), J. Berg Esenwein (June 1905 to March 1914), and Louise R. Bull (1914), whose signature appears increasingly throughout the series. Frederic L. Colver and Walter S. Slack signed occasionally from 1913. In addition to editorial matters, subjects include serial and motion picture rights.
There is one volume of international correspondence written by J. M. Stoddart to J. Garmeson and others (1889 – 1894). These letters deal with editorial and management issues surrounding the start up and continued publication of the English edition of Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine. This volume contains letters to Arthur Conan Doyle, Oscar Wilde, and Rudyard Kipling.
In 1899, advertising correspondence for the magazine was separated from editorial concerns and received its own dedicated series of letterbooks (1889 – 1905). Letters in these books were signed by Charles E. Roberts and E. Chase (starting in 1903). After 1905, letters related to periodical advertising correspondence were handled by the manufacturing department.
One file of unbound correspondence and receipts for Lippincott’s “Notable Stories” (1893) completes this subseries.
Records in this subseries provide extensive documentation of payments for manuscripts and rights for material appearing in Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine from 1869 to 1914. These have been maintained in their original groups as received from the J. B. Lippincott Company. The first section contains several sets of payment receipts for manuscripts and rights which are variously organized. Many are arranged chronologically and alphabetically. Second is a group of five letterpress receipt books for manuscript rights. The third section section consists of extensive manuscript purchase and disposal records (1869 – 1918), which continued to document sales of manuscript rights after Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine was sold. Cards appear in three major groups (1869 – 1918, 1899 – 1914, and circa 1897 – circa 1912) and are organized alphabetically, followed by three folders of miscellaneous cards. Five letterpress receipt books (1899 - 1914) and two manuscript payments record books (1870 – 1911) conclude the magazine’s manuscript records.
This minor subseries contains only one folder of artwork and one folder of accompanying captions by W. M. Goodes.
The Lippincott firm published many medical periodicals, which include International Medical Magazine (from 1891), Annals of Surgery (from 1897), American Journal of Nursing (from 1900 to September 1913), and the International Dental Journal. For additional letters concerning subscriptions for some of these journals, see the manufacturing department letter books.
Outgoing correspondence for the medical periodicals relates to advertising. One volume concerns advertising for International Medical Magazine (1891 – 1893) and is mostly signed by Charles E. Roberts. Four volumes concern advertising for Lippincott’s other medical magazines. Most letters are signed by E. H. Kimball, advertising manager, and later William M. Hayes (1902 – 1905). One folder of copyrights for Annals of Surgery (1901) concludes the series.
Lippincott’s London agency was opened at 10 Henrietta Street, Covent Garden, in 1875, under the directorship of Joseph Garmeson. The agency occupied various Covent Garden addresses, mostly on Henrietta Street until a 1913 removal to 16 John Street, Adelphi. In January 1918, these premises were commandeered for the duration of the war, forcing removal to temporary offices at 34 Bedford Street and 22 Henrietta Street. In February 1920, the agency returned to the John Street address. The original director, Joseph Garmeson, was succeeded by Arthur Milner in early 1906. Milner resigned suddenly in March 1922, and H. G. Lown took over as managing director.
Outgoing correspondence to the London agency is in three series of pressed letterbooks. The first is general correspondence running from 1875 to 1895. This sequence appears to be missing one or two letterbooks and most of another. Signatories include Henry H. Kimball, John N. Rawlings, William S. Walsh, and “M. S.” (unidentified). The second, less complete group spans 1899 to 1923 and pertains to editorial and production matters. These books are signed by John N. Rawlings as well as Ellis W. Bacon, Alfred C. Balch, Ralph Bicknell, H. G. Emery, J. Berg Esenwein, Edward S. Holloway, Joseph Wharton Lippincott, Olive M. Sudders, Churchill Williams, and “M. S.” (unidentified). The third group is correspondence related primarily to imports, written mostly by Horace S. Ridings between 1894 and 1921. Thomas P. Bacon and J. Bertram Lippincott also signed these letterbooks.
Incoming letters and cables from Lippincott’s London Agency were bound into scrapbook volumes which spanned from 1890 to 1936. Due to their condition, these volumes have been disbound and rehoused in archival folders and boxes. In addition to correspondence originating with the London office employees, there are occasional letters from Lippincott’s Philadelphia directors and employees written while they were overseas. These include J. Jefferson Jones and J. Bertram Lippincott.
The records of the manufacturing department date almost exclusively from the 20th century. The department’s activities encompass much of the day-to-day work of publishing, ranging from layouts and proofs to advertising and orders. This series includes 142 volumes of outgoing correspondence plus a variety of accounting and record books.
A near-complete series of pressed letterbooks ranges from 1899 to 1923, with two volumes predating the 1899 fire which destroyed the plant. Letters cover various topics including invoices, remittances, orders, inquiries, and layouts. There is a significant amount of correspondence to advertising and sales agents and some commission statements. Frederic L. Colver’s letters starting in 1913 reflect a campaign to increase periodical circulation. Among the other employees whose letters are recorded here are Alfred C. Balch; M. Blair (“Miss Blair”); George Burkhardt; J. C. Chevalier; Charles Clarke; George W. Daley; S. Boyer Davis; William F. Dowell; J. Berg Esenwein; Harry H. Fell; S. C. Garner; J. B. M. Grier; William P. Grunthorp, Jr.; William M. Hayes; Edward S. Holloway; George B. Carfrey; E. L. D. Roach; F. A. Roberts; Julian Shoemaker; Walter S. Slack; and “M.S.” (unidentified).
Only 131 leaves used.
The accounting records begin with a series of five sales journals ranging from 1905 to 1937. There is also a single job order book (1925 – 1929). This is followed by a series of six year-end departmental inventory books (1950 – 1956). Production records (circa 1900 – 1939) consist of two series of file cards. The first series (undated) is book production cards for the second half of the alphabet. The second is book cost and record cards for dead series (1921 – 1939). These are organized somewhat alphabetically and have been maintained in their original groups. A single composition order (1923) completes the production records. A plate inventory book (1900 – 1901) follows.
This small series is a heterogeneous mixture of sales-related records. It contains outgoing correspondence regarding sales to the trade and sales to individuals. Also included are letterbooks of the Educational Department which concern sales to schools and colleges. A small number of ledgers, sales reports, and commission records make up the rest of the series.
One volume (538), with many letters signed by Henry H. Kimball, relates to sales to the trade (1882 - 1888). Volumes 539 through 546 are outgoing letters relating to sales to individuals and non-trade accounts for 1907 to 1912, with only one gap in the run. Many of these are signed by G. H. Newton or, from 1910, by “Miss Miller.” Volumes 547 through 551 consist of outgoing letters from the educational department, which concern sales of textbooks. These are signed by Ellis W. Bacon, Charles H. Robertson (who signed as “Ro.”), Thomas P. Bacon, and an unidentified “H. P.” (1910 - 1914). The remaining two volumes (552 - 553) contain correspondence related to school and college quotations and the Historical Tales series; the letters are signed by Ellis W. Bacon, Thomas P. Bacon, and William M. Lednum (1910 - 1913).
Only 191 leaves used.
This subseries is comprised of a small array of unrelated sales records and account books. There are two sales ledgers, one for jobbers and one for bookstores and individuals (1907 - 1911); one folder of retail sales reports (1922 - 1924); three volumes of alesmen’s commission records (1938 - 1946); a journal for sales of medical books to doctors (1941 - 1943); and notecards for a sales presentation (1956).
The business department handled the financial matters of the company. The records in this series contain of a small number of pressed letterbooks and a variety of account books and journals with dates ranging from 1853 to 1958.
This small subseries consists of five pressed letterbooks, four containing correspondence from Thomas P. Bacon, director (1899 - 1913). Letters were also signed by J. Bertram Lippincott (vice president), Robert P. Morton (secretary and treasurer), and Horace S. Ridings. There is a single book of letters written by attorney Allen B. Clement (1907) on behalf of the company.
A variety of accounting and financial records in this subseries spans over 100 years. None are complete for their date range except for the payroll records. There are three private account books from the early days of the company (1853 – 1879), including Joshua B. Lippincott’s day book and the partners’ private cash ledger. Volumes 596 and 597 are inventory (1888) and valuation books (1917 – 1936). For inventories of book stock, paper, etc. (1950 – 1956), see Volumes 559 through 565 in Series 5. A group of ten general journals ranges from 1906 to 1947. Cash records are comprised of six cash receipts journals (1908 – 1947) and one cash collections book (1938), eight cash disbursements journals (1910 – 1945), three folders of stamps records (1923), and two voucher registers (1927 – 1931 and 1942 – 1944). Six volumes (627 – 632) of payroll records complete the subseries (1937 – 1958). The back of each payroll book has many notes, letters, and human resources-related papers pasted in. The payroll records are closed to researchers for 75 years from the date of creation. See individual volumes for when access restrictions expire.
Frederick A. Stokes Company was founded in 1881 as White and Stokes. Most records in this small series are dated prior to the firm’s acquisition by J. B. Lippincott Company in 1941. There is a single folder of author correspondence. The remainder is a hodge-podge of accounting and other records ranging from sales and royalties to manufacturing and advertising. This series has been arranged chronologically.
This series contains circa 23 shelf feet of printed volumes, chiefly the publications of the Lippincott firm, but a few from other firms including F. A. Stokes Company, Grigg and Elliott, and Lippincott, Grambo and Company. Notable titles include Letter of Hernando De Soto and Memoir of Hernando de Escalante Fontaneda (Volume 635), of which only 100 copies were printed; and The Veterinary Surgeon: Or Farriery Taught on a New and Easy Plan (Volume 653) which contains a Civil War inscription by Lt. A. Benson Brown. Many issues of Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine are also represented.
The final series of the collection contains a partial set of electrotype printing plates (1878), a few photographs (circa 1905 and undated), a description of the history of the company (circa 1960), a group of book catalogs, mostly from Lippincott successors (1961 - 1978), and letterbook indexes from unidentified volumes.