Bobbs-Merrill Company
Encyclopedia
The Bobbs-Merrill Company was a book publisher located in Indianapolis
, Indiana
. Bobbs-Merrill was known for publishing such authors as Richard Halliburton
, David Markson
, Ayn Rand
, James Whitcomb Riley
, Walter Dean Myers
, and Irma S. Rombauer. Bobbs-Merrill also published the early works of America's first successful writer of fantasy, L. Frank Baum
, whose 1900 book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is recognized as America's first home-grown fairy tale. Bobbs-Merrill was also responsible for publishing the official records of the State of Indiana and texts in the history of philosophy.
The company history starts in 1850 when Samuel Merrill
bought an Indianapolis bookstore and entered the publishing business. After his death in 1855, his son, Samuel Merrill, Jr. continued the business. Soon after the Civil War the business became Merrill, Meigs, and Company, and in 1883 the name changed again to the Bowen-Merrill Company. In 1903 the name became the Bobbs-Merrill Company, after long-time director, William Conrad Bobbs. From 1899 through 1909, the company published sixteen novels whose exceptionally large sales placed each of them among the nation's top ten best-selling books of the year for one or more years.
The company was plaintiff in Bobbs-Merrill Co. v. Straus
, 210 U.S. 339 (1908), a case regarded as the origin of copyright's First Sale Doctrine.
In 1959, The Howard W. Sams Company purchased Bobbs-Merrill. When Sams was acquired by Macmillan
in 1985, the Bobbs-Merrill name ceased being used with the exception of continued sales of the Fifth Revision of The Joy of Cooking
, which continued to be a steady seller for Macmillan, as well as selected College Division titles such as the Library of Liberal Arts.
Indianapolis
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
. Bobbs-Merrill was known for publishing such authors as Richard Halliburton
Richard Halliburton
Richard Halliburton was an American traveler, adventurer, and author. Best known today for having swum the length of the Panama Canal and paying the lowest toll in its history—thirty-six cents—Halliburton was headline news for most of his brief career...
, David Markson
David Markson
David Markson was an American novelist, born David Merrill Markson in Albany, New York. He is the author of several postmodern novels, including Springer's Progress, Wittgenstein's Mistress, and Reader's Block...
, Ayn Rand
Ayn Rand
Ayn Rand was a Russian-American novelist, philosopher, playwright, and screenwriter. She is known for her two best-selling novels The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged and for developing a philosophical system she called Objectivism....
, James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley was an American writer, poet, and best selling author. During his lifetime he was known as the Hoosier Poet and Children's Poet for his dialect works and his children's poetry respectively...
, Walter Dean Myers
Walter Dean Myers
Walter Dean Myers is an African American author of young adult literature. Myers has written over fifty books, including novels and nonfiction works. He has won the Coretta Scott King Award for African American authors five times...
, and Irma S. Rombauer. Bobbs-Merrill also published the early works of America's first successful writer of fantasy, L. Frank Baum
L. Frank Baum
Lyman Frank Baum was an American author of children's books, best known for writing The Wonderful Wizard of Oz...
, whose 1900 book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is recognized as America's first home-grown fairy tale. Bobbs-Merrill was also responsible for publishing the official records of the State of Indiana and texts in the history of philosophy.
The company history starts in 1850 when Samuel Merrill
Samuel Merrill (Indiana)
Samuel Merrill was an early leading citizen of the U.S. state of Indiana.-Biography:Samuel was born in 1792 in Peacham, Vermont, the second son of Jesse and Priscilla Merrill. He attended Dartmouth College for one year before moving to Pennsylvania to study law with his older brother James. In...
bought an Indianapolis bookstore and entered the publishing business. After his death in 1855, his son, Samuel Merrill, Jr. continued the business. Soon after the Civil War the business became Merrill, Meigs, and Company, and in 1883 the name changed again to the Bowen-Merrill Company. In 1903 the name became the Bobbs-Merrill Company, after long-time director, William Conrad Bobbs. From 1899 through 1909, the company published sixteen novels whose exceptionally large sales placed each of them among the nation's top ten best-selling books of the year for one or more years.
The company was plaintiff in Bobbs-Merrill Co. v. Straus
Bobbs-Merrill Co. v. Straus
Bobbs-Merrill Co. v. Straus, , was a United States Supreme Court decision concerning the scope of rights accorded owners of a copyright. This was a case of first impression concerning whether the copyright laws permit an owner to control a purchaser's subsequent sale of a copyrighted work...
, 210 U.S. 339 (1908), a case regarded as the origin of copyright's First Sale Doctrine.
In 1959, The Howard W. Sams Company purchased Bobbs-Merrill. When Sams was acquired by Macmillan
Macmillan Publishers (United States)
Macmillan Publishers USA, also known as Macmillan Publishing, is a privately held American publishing company owned by the Georg von Holtzbrinck Publishing Group. It has offices in 41 countries worldwide and operates in more than 30 others....
in 1985, the Bobbs-Merrill name ceased being used with the exception of continued sales of the Fifth Revision of The Joy of Cooking
The Joy of Cooking
Joy of Cooking, often known as "The Joy of Cooking" is one of the United States' most-published cookbooks, and has been in print continuously since 1936 and with more than 18 million copies sold. It was privately published in 1931 by Irma S. Rombauer, a homemaker in St. Louis, Missouri, who was...
, which continued to be a steady seller for Macmillan, as well as selected College Division titles such as the Library of Liberal Arts.
Sources
- Jack O'Bar, The Origins and History of the Bobbs-Merrill Company, Occasional Papers, Graduate School of Library and Information Science, Publications Office, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (1985).