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Jonathan Leavitt (publisher)
Encyclopedia
Jonathan Leavitt was a bookbinder who later co-founded the New York City publishing
firm of Leavitt & Trow, one of the nation's first publishing houses. Leavitt was also co-founder of another early New York publishing house with his brother-in-law Daniel Appleton
. George Palmer Putnam
, who went on to found a New York publishing dynasty, received his first job from Leavitt. Eventually Jonathan Leavitt went into business on his own, and after his death the firm was run by his son George Ayres Leavitt
.
Jonathan Leavitt was born in 1797 at Hampton Falls, New Hampshire
likely to Simeon Leavitt and his wife Betty (née) Tuck. An obituary in The Publishers' Weekly for Jonathan Leavitt's son George Ayers Leavitt, who followed his father into the publishing industry, indicates a family association with Effingham Falls
(now simply Effingham), New Hampshire. The New Hampshire town had once been named Leavitts Town, and was settled chiefly by members of the Leavitt family from Hampton, New Hampshire
. Leavitt served as an apprentice bookbinder in Cambridge, Massachusetts
and then moved to Andover, Massachusetts
in 1812–13. In Andover, Leavitt and printers Abraham Gould and Timothy Flagg set up a press for the Andover Theological Seminary. Leavitt and his two partners continued to operate their printing and bookbinding operation after Leavitt decided to relocate after over a decade in Andover.
Leavitt married the former Joan Ayres at Haverhill, Massachusetts
, on July 8, 1820 at the age of 23. Although most accounts give the name of Leavitt's wife as Joan Ayres – and Ayres was subsequently the middle name of Leavitt's son George, who took over his father's publishing business – Sidney Perley, in his authoritative The Essex Antiquarian, lists under the 'Adams Genealogy' the information that Major John Adams of Andover, Massachusetts, had daughters Louisa (who married 'Jonathan Leavitt') and Hannah (who married "Daniel Appleton of Haverhill' of "the Appleton Publishing House of New York City.").
In 1825, Leavitt moved to New York City and went into business with his brother-in-law Daniel Appleton
, who formerly worked as a Boston
dry goods merchant but who had founded D. Appleton & Co., a large store on Exchange Place opposite the Customs House
, to sell books. Appleton put up the capital for the founding of a publishing business with his brother-in-law Leavitt. The store on Exchange Place
was divided into two sections, with Appleton's son William later taking charge of the bookselling functions. After five years of partnership, and feeling he could continue his business without further capital infusions from his brother-in-law, Jonathan Leavitt went into business for himself, opening a store at Broadway and John Streets and hiring George Palmer Putnam
(then aged 16) as his apprentice and right-hand man. Appleton and his son subsequently moved their business to what was known as Clinton Hall, on Beekman Street, where they established themselves as well-known booksellers. With his partnership with Appleton dissolved, Leavitt became the leading publisher of religious and theological works in New York city.
Leavitt also acted as publisher for his early employee Putnam, who went on to open his own eponymous publishing firm, which became an industry fixture. "Mr. Leavitt is willing to publish the volume I have compiled", Putnam wrote to a correspondent during his term of employment with Jonathan Leavitt, "as soon as he is satisfied that it will be acceptable with the public." In 1833, Leavitt publish Putnam's first book: Chronology, or An Introduction and Index to Universal History, Biography, and Useful Knowledge. The volume, which Putnam had first compiled for his own use, received a then-enormous printing run of 1,000 copies. The book's success, and Putnam's increasing usefulness to Leavitt's business caused the proprietor to advance him to a salary of two dollars per week, and within a few months to four dollars per week.
Broadway emerged early as center of the publishers who came to New York City, and Leavitt was among the pioneers of the business. Leavitt's brother-in-law Appleton had worked in the dry goods
business in Boston, and took on management of the wholesale part of the new firm's printing business. Appleton later founded his own publishing firm, which later grew into one of the industry's largest, nearby at 200 Broadway.
. They founded John F. Trow & Co., as well a second firm under their combined names, Leavitt & Trow, to do publishing and bookselling.
From the beginning, the new firm published a wide array of books and pamphlets. In 1841, for instance, its presses turned out Merciful Rebukes: A Sermon Preached in the Rutgers Street Church, New York, on Friday, May 14, 1841, On Occasion of the National Fast Recommended by the President of the United States. Two years later, the firm published a more ambitious project: a four-volume set of the sermons and papers of Rev. Jonathan Edwards entitled The Works of President Edwards, in Four Volumes. The firm, with the experienced Trow in command of the printing end, also published the classical series of Prof. John J. Owen, which was wildly popular and went through several printings.
Leavitt's partner Trow was an early adapter of new printing technologies, and among the first to use power presses, then in 1840 a stereotype press as well. In 1843, the John F. Trow firm printed in 1843 Memoir of Mrs. Louisa Adams Leavitt by Rev. Asa Dodge Smith.
Leavitt & Trow became a prominent presence on the early New York publishing landscape, not least because of partner Trow's familiarity with the latest printing technologies, but also due to his heavy involvement in the business. "Our business has the personal attention of ourselves", Trow wrote to the public in 1845, "and we trust by unwearied application to receive from our patrons and the public in general a continuance of their patronage." In 1847 the two Andover natives began publishing directories. (In the following years the Trow directories to New York became an established city institution). The pair were soon joined in the business by George Ayres Leavitt
, Jonathan's son, who had recently graduated from Phillips Academy
in Andover, and who had served an early apprenticeship with publishers Robinson & Franklin.
About 1848 the two founding partners split their interests: Trow returned to running his own company (primarily his increasingly lucrative directory business, which he largely invented); and Leavitt went into business with his son until his death. The firm retained the name Leavitt & Trow up until Jonathan Leavitt's death. George A. Leavitt continued his father's business as a sole proprietorship for a year until he joined forces with childhood playmate John K. Allen, who had been brought up in the publishing business.
Publishing
Publishing is the process of production and dissemination of literature or information—the activity of making information available to the general public...
firm of Leavitt & Trow, one of the nation's first publishing houses. Leavitt was also co-founder of another early New York publishing house with his brother-in-law Daniel Appleton
Daniel Appleton
Daniel Appleton was an American publisher.-Biography:He was born in Haverhill, Massachusetts. After a few years of schooling, he started a general store in Haverill. Later, he moved to Boston where he sold dry-goods imported from England...
. George Palmer Putnam
George Palmer Putnam
George Palmer Putnam was an important American book publisher.-Biography:Putnam was born in Brunswick, Maine. On moving to New York City, Putnam was given his first job by Jonathan Leavitt, who subsequently published Putnam's first book...
, who went on to found a New York publishing dynasty, received his first job from Leavitt. Eventually Jonathan Leavitt went into business on his own, and after his death the firm was run by his son George Ayres Leavitt
George Ayres Leavitt
George Ayres Leavitt was the son of a Massachusetts bookbinder who founded several of New York's earliest publishing firms. George Leavitt subsequently founded his own publishing company, Leavitt & Allen, but it failed during a financial panic that swept the nation during the American Civil War...
.
History
Hampton Falls, New Hampshire
Hampton Falls is a New England town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 2,236 at the 2010 census.-History:...
likely to Simeon Leavitt and his wife Betty (née) Tuck. An obituary in The Publishers' Weekly for Jonathan Leavitt's son George Ayers Leavitt, who followed his father into the publishing industry, indicates a family association with Effingham Falls
Effingham, New Hampshire
Effingham is a town in Carroll County, New Hampshire, United States. As of the 2010 census, the town population was 1,465. Effingham includes the villages of Effingham Falls, Effingham , Center Effingham , and South Effingham...
(now simply Effingham), New Hampshire. The New Hampshire town had once been named Leavitts Town, and was settled chiefly by members of the Leavitt family from Hampton, New Hampshire
Hampton, New Hampshire
Hampton is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 14,976 at the 2010 census. Located beside the Atlantic Ocean, Hampton is home to Hampton Beach, a summer tourist destination....
. Leavitt served as an apprentice bookbinder in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
and then moved to Andover, Massachusetts
Andover, Massachusetts
Andover is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. It was incorporated in 1646 and as of the 2010 census, the population was 33,201...
in 1812–13. In Andover, Leavitt and printers Abraham Gould and Timothy Flagg set up a press for the Andover Theological Seminary. Leavitt and his two partners continued to operate their printing and bookbinding operation after Leavitt decided to relocate after over a decade in Andover.
Leavitt married the former Joan Ayres at Haverhill, Massachusetts
Haverhill, Massachusetts
Haverhill is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 60,879 at the 2010 census.Located on the Merrimack River, it began as a farming community that would evolve into an important industrial center, beginning with sawmills and gristmills run by water power. In the...
, on July 8, 1820 at the age of 23. Although most accounts give the name of Leavitt's wife as Joan Ayres – and Ayres was subsequently the middle name of Leavitt's son George, who took over his father's publishing business – Sidney Perley, in his authoritative The Essex Antiquarian, lists under the 'Adams Genealogy' the information that Major John Adams of Andover, Massachusetts, had daughters Louisa (who married 'Jonathan Leavitt') and Hannah (who married "Daniel Appleton of Haverhill' of "the Appleton Publishing House of New York City.").
New York City
Daniel Appleton
Daniel Appleton was an American publisher.-Biography:He was born in Haverhill, Massachusetts. After a few years of schooling, he started a general store in Haverill. Later, he moved to Boston where he sold dry-goods imported from England...
, who formerly worked as a Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
dry goods merchant but who had founded D. Appleton & Co., a large store on Exchange Place opposite the Customs House
Custom House
A custom house or customs house was a building housing the offices for the government officials who processed the paperwork for the import and export of goods into and out of a country. Customs officials also collected customs duty on imported goods....
, to sell books. Appleton put up the capital for the founding of a publishing business with his brother-in-law Leavitt. The store on Exchange Place
Exchange Place
Exchange Place can be the name of:*Exchange Place , an office building complex*Exchange Place , a district/neighborhood**Exchange Place **Exchange Place **Exchange Place...
was divided into two sections, with Appleton's son William later taking charge of the bookselling functions. After five years of partnership, and feeling he could continue his business without further capital infusions from his brother-in-law, Jonathan Leavitt went into business for himself, opening a store at Broadway and John Streets and hiring George Palmer Putnam
George Palmer Putnam
George Palmer Putnam was an important American book publisher.-Biography:Putnam was born in Brunswick, Maine. On moving to New York City, Putnam was given his first job by Jonathan Leavitt, who subsequently published Putnam's first book...
(then aged 16) as his apprentice and right-hand man. Appleton and his son subsequently moved their business to what was known as Clinton Hall, on Beekman Street, where they established themselves as well-known booksellers. With his partnership with Appleton dissolved, Leavitt became the leading publisher of religious and theological works in New York city.
Leavitt also acted as publisher for his early employee Putnam, who went on to open his own eponymous publishing firm, which became an industry fixture. "Mr. Leavitt is willing to publish the volume I have compiled", Putnam wrote to a correspondent during his term of employment with Jonathan Leavitt, "as soon as he is satisfied that it will be acceptable with the public." In 1833, Leavitt publish Putnam's first book: Chronology, or An Introduction and Index to Universal History, Biography, and Useful Knowledge. The volume, which Putnam had first compiled for his own use, received a then-enormous printing run of 1,000 copies. The book's success, and Putnam's increasing usefulness to Leavitt's business caused the proprietor to advance him to a salary of two dollars per week, and within a few months to four dollars per week.
Broadway emerged early as center of the publishers who came to New York City, and Leavitt was among the pioneers of the business. Leavitt's brother-in-law Appleton had worked in the dry goods
Dry goods
Dry goods are products such as textiles, ready-to-wear clothing, and sundries. In U.S. retailing, a dry goods store carries consumer goods that are distinct from those carried by hardware stores and grocery stores, though "dry goods" as a term for textiles has been dated back to 1742 in England or...
business in Boston, and took on management of the wholesale part of the new firm's printing business. Appleton later founded his own publishing firm, which later grew into one of the industry's largest, nearby at 200 Broadway.
John F. Trow & Co.
In 1840, Leavitt became partners with fellow Andover native John F. Trow, a veteran of the Andover publishing firm Leavitt had helped found: Flagg & Gould, operator of the Codman Press. The pair of Andover men founded two publishing firms – both located at 191 Broadway in Lower ManhattanLower Manhattan
Lower Manhattan is the southernmost part of the island of Manhattan, the main island and center of business and government of the City of New York...
. They founded John F. Trow & Co., as well a second firm under their combined names, Leavitt & Trow, to do publishing and bookselling.
From the beginning, the new firm published a wide array of books and pamphlets. In 1841, for instance, its presses turned out Merciful Rebukes: A Sermon Preached in the Rutgers Street Church, New York, on Friday, May 14, 1841, On Occasion of the National Fast Recommended by the President of the United States. Two years later, the firm published a more ambitious project: a four-volume set of the sermons and papers of Rev. Jonathan Edwards entitled The Works of President Edwards, in Four Volumes. The firm, with the experienced Trow in command of the printing end, also published the classical series of Prof. John J. Owen, which was wildly popular and went through several printings.
Leavitt's partner Trow was an early adapter of new printing technologies, and among the first to use power presses, then in 1840 a stereotype press as well. In 1843, the John F. Trow firm printed in 1843 Memoir of Mrs. Louisa Adams Leavitt by Rev. Asa Dodge Smith.
Leavitt & Trow became a prominent presence on the early New York publishing landscape, not least because of partner Trow's familiarity with the latest printing technologies, but also due to his heavy involvement in the business. "Our business has the personal attention of ourselves", Trow wrote to the public in 1845, "and we trust by unwearied application to receive from our patrons and the public in general a continuance of their patronage." In 1847 the two Andover natives began publishing directories. (In the following years the Trow directories to New York became an established city institution). The pair were soon joined in the business by George Ayres Leavitt
George Ayres Leavitt
George Ayres Leavitt was the son of a Massachusetts bookbinder who founded several of New York's earliest publishing firms. George Leavitt subsequently founded his own publishing company, Leavitt & Allen, but it failed during a financial panic that swept the nation during the American Civil War...
, Jonathan's son, who had recently graduated from Phillips Academy
Phillips Academy
Phillips Academy is a selective, co-educational independent boarding high school for boarding and day students in grades 9–12, along with a post-graduate year...
in Andover, and who had served an early apprenticeship with publishers Robinson & Franklin.
About 1848 the two founding partners split their interests: Trow returned to running his own company (primarily his increasingly lucrative directory business, which he largely invented); and Leavitt went into business with his son until his death. The firm retained the name Leavitt & Trow up until Jonathan Leavitt's death. George A. Leavitt continued his father's business as a sole proprietorship for a year until he joined forces with childhood playmate John K. Allen, who had been brought up in the publishing business.
Further reading
- Statement of John F. Trow, Leavitt, Trow & Co.