William Blackwood and Sons was a Scottish publishing house and printer founded by

William Blackwood William Blackwood (20 November 177616 September 1834) was a Scottish publisher who founded the firm of William Blackwood and Sons. Life Blackwood was born in Edinburgh on 20 November 1776. At the age of 14 he was apprenticed to a firm of book ...

in 1804. It played a key role in literary history, publishing many important authors, for example

John Buchan John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir (; 26 August 1875 – 11 February 1940) was a Scottish novelist, historian, and Unionist politician who served as Governor General of Canada, the 15th since Canadian Confederation. After a brief legal career ...

George Tomkyns Chesney Sir George Tomkyns Chesney (30 April 1830 – 31 March 1895) was a British Army general, politician, and writer of fiction. He is remembered as the author of the novella ''The Battle of Dorking'' (1871), a founding work in the genre of invasion ...

Joseph Conrad Joseph Conrad (born Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski, ; 3 December 1857 – 3 August 1924) was a Poles in the United Kingdom#19th century, Polish-British novelist and short story writer. He is regarded as one of the greatest writers in t ...

, George Eliot, E. M. Forster, John Galt, John Neal, Thomas De Quincey,

Charles Reade Charles Reade (8 June 1814 – 11 April 1884) was a British novelist and dramatist, best known for '' The Cloister and the Hearth''. Life Charles Reade was born at Ipsden, Oxfordshire, to John Reade and Anne Marie Scott-Waring, and had at leas ...

, Margaret Oliphant, John Hanning Speke and

Anthony Trollope Anthony Trollope (; 24 April 1815 – 6 December 1882) was an English novelist and civil servant of the Victorian era. Among his best-known works is a series of novels collectively known as the '' Chronicles of Barsetshire'', which revolves ar ...

, both in books and in the monthly ''

Blackwood’s Magazine ''Blackwood's Magazine'' was a British magazine and miscellany printed between 1817 and 1980. It was founded by the publisher William Blackwood and was originally called the ''Edinburgh Monthly Magazine''. The first number appeared in April 1817 ...

''.

History

In 1804 William Blackwood opened a shop in South Bridge Street, Edinburgh, for the sale of old, rare and curious books. He undertook the Scottish agency for John Murray and other London publishers, and gradually drifted into publishing on his own account, moving in 1816 to

Princes Street Princes Street ( gd, Sràid nam Prionnsan) is one of the major thoroughfares in central Edinburgh, Scotland and the main shopping street in the capital. It is the southernmost street of Edinburgh's New Town, stretching around 1.2 km (three ...

. On 1 April 1817 the first number of the ''Edinburgh Monthly Magazine'' was published, which on its seventh number became ''

Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine ''Blackwood's Magazine'' was a British magazine and miscellany printed between 1817 and 1980. It was founded by the publisher William Blackwood and was originally called the ''Edinburgh Monthly Magazine''. The first number appeared in April 1817 ...

''. "''Maga''," as this magazine soon came to be called, was the organ of the Scottish

Tory A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. Th ...

party, and round it gathered a host of able writers. In May 1824 ''Blackwood's'' became the first British literary journal to publish work by an American with an essay by John Neal that got reprinted across Europe. Over the following year and a half the magazine published Neal's "American Writers" series, which is the first written history of American literature. The relationship between Blackwood and Neal fell apart over Neal's novel ''Brother Jonathan,'' which Blackwood published at a loss in late 1825. In 1829 he wrote to his son William in India telling him that he was moving from Princes Street to 45 George Street as George Street was "becoming more and more a place of business and the east end of Princes Street is now like Charring Cross, a mere place for coaches". His brother Thomas bought 43 and in 1830 Thomas Hamilton remodelled the entire frontage of the pair for the Blackwood Brothers or Messrs. Blackwood. Thomas' shop operated as a silk merchant. William Blackwood died in 1834 and is buried in an ornate vault in the lower western section of

Old Calton Cemetery The Old Calton Burial Ground is a cemetery in Edinburgh, Scotland. It located at Calton Hill to the north-east of the city centre. The burial ground was opened in 1718, and is the resting place of several notable Scots, including philosopher ...

. He was succeeded by his two sons, Alexander and Robert, who added a London branch to the firm. In 1845 Alexander Blackwood died, and shortly afterwards Robert. A younger brother, John Blackwood succeeded to the business; four years later he was joined by Major William Blackwood, who continued in the firm until his death in 1861. In 1862 the major's elder son, William Blackwood (born 1836), was taken into partnership. On the death of John Blackwood, William Blackwood junior was left in sole control of the business. With him were associated his nephews, George William and JH Blackwood, sons of Major George Blackwood, who was killed at

Maiwand Maiwand is a village in Afghanistan within the Maywand District of Kandahar Province. It is located 50 miles northwest of Kandahar, on the main Kandahar–Lashkargah road. The area is irrigated by the Helmand and Arghandab Valley Authority.

in 1880. The last member of the Blackwood family to run the company was

Douglas Blackwood George Douglas Morant Blackwood, (11 October 1909 – 2 March 1997) was a British publisher and a fighter pilot in the Royal Air Force during World War II. Early life Douglas Blackwood was a great-great-grandson of William Blackwood who founded ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Blackwood was a fighter pilot and at the height of the

Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...

recalled looking down from 25,000 feet to see the firm's London office in

Paternoster Row Paternoster Row was a street in the City of London that was a centre of the London publishing trade, with booksellers operating from the street. Paternoster Row was described as "almost synonymous" with the book trade. It was part of an area cal ...

ablaze. Millions of books were lost in the fire and the destruction of Blackwood's base in the City of London marked the beginning of the firm's decline. He retired in 1976 and by 1980 the firm had amalgamated. See ''Annals of a Publishing House; William Blackwood and his Sons ...'' (1897–1898), the first two volumes of which were written by Mrs Oliphant; the third, dealing with John Blackwood, by his daughter, Mrs Gerald Porter.

Books first published by Blackwood

*'' Edinburgh Encyclopædia'' (from 1808), editor

David Brewster Sir David Brewster KH PRSE FRS FSA Scot FSSA MICE (11 December 178110 February 1868) was a British scientist, inventor, author, and academic administrator. In science he is principally remembered for his experimental work in physical optics ...

*''The Pilgrim of the Sun'', (1814) James Hogg *'' Mador of the Moor'', (1816), James Hogg *''

The Black Dwarf ''The Black Dwarf'' (1817–1824) was a satirical radical journal of early 19th century Britain. It was published by Thomas Jonathan Wooler, starting in January 1817 as an eight-page newspaper, then later becoming a 32-page pamphlet. It was price ...

'' (1816),

Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'', ''Rob Roy (n ...

*''Brother Jonathan: or, the New Englanders'' (1825), John Neal *''

The Course of Time ''The Course of Time'' is a ten-book poem in blank verse, first published in 1827. It was the last published and most famous work of Scottish poet Robert Pollok. The first edition of the poem sold 12,000 copies, and by its fourth edition it had ...

'' (1827),

Robert Pollok Robert Pollok (19 October 1798 – 15 September 1827) was a Scottish poet best known for his work, ''The Course of Time'', published in the year of his death. Biography Pollok was born at North Moorhouse Farm, Loganswell, Renfrewshire, Scotl ...

*''

Ten Thousand a-Year ''Ten Thousand a-Year'' is a novel written by English barrister Samuel Warren. First published in 1841, it enjoyed widespread popularity in the United States and Europe for much of the century. Background When first published, the novel was sp ...

'' (1841), Samuel Warren *'' Scenes of Clerical Life'' (1857), George Eliot **
Scenes of Clerical Life
' free PDF of Blackwood's 1878 Cabinet Edition (the critical standard with Eliot's final corrections) at the
George Eliot Archive
' *'' Adam Bede'' (1859), George Eliot **
Adam Bede
' free PDF of Blackwood's 1878 Cabinet Edition (the critical standard with Eliot's final corrections) at the
George Eliot Archive
' *'' The Lifted Veil'' (1859), George Eliot **
The Lifted Veil
' free PDF of Blackwood's 1878 Cabinet Edition (the critical standard with Eliot's final corrections) at the
George Eliot Archive
' *'' The Mill on the Floss'' (1860), George Eliot **
The Mill on the Floss
' free PDF of Blackwood's 1878 Cabinet Edition (the critical standard with Eliot's final corrections) at the
George Eliot Archive
' *''

Silas Marner ''Silas Marner: The Weaver of Raveloe'' is the third novel by George Eliot. It was published in 1861. An outwardly simple tale of a linen weaver, the novel is notable for its strong realism and its sophisticated treatment of a variety of issues ...

'' (1861), George Eliot **
Silas Marner
' free PDF of Blackwood's 1878 Cabinet Edition (the critical standard with Eliot's final corrections) at the
George Eliot Archive
' *'' Felix Holt, the Radical'' (1866), George Eliot **
Felix Holt, the Radical
' free PDF of Blackwood's 1878 Cabinet Edition (the critical standard with Eliot's final corrections) at the
George Eliot Archive
' *'' Middlemarch'' (1871-8172), George Eliot **
Middlemarch
' free PDF of Blackwood's 1878 Cabinet Edition (the critical standard with Eliot's final corrections) at the
George Eliot Archive
' *''

Daniel Deronda ''Daniel Deronda'' is a novel written by Mary Ann Evans under the pen name of George Eliot, first published in eight parts (books) February to September 1876. It was the last novel she completed and the only one set in the Victorian society ...

'' (1876), George Eliot **
Daniel Deronda
' free PDF of Blackwood's 1878 Cabinet Edition (the critical standard with Eliot's final corrections) at the
George Eliot Archive
' *'' Impressions of Theophrastus Such'' (1879), George Eliot **
Impressions of Theophrastus Such
' free PDF of Blackwood's 1878 Cabinet Edition (the critical standard with Eliot's final corrections) at the
''George Eliot Archive''
' *''

The Fixed Period ''The Fixed Period'' (1882) is a satirical dystopian novel by Anthony Trollope. Introduction It was first published in six instalments in ''Blackwood's Magazine'' in 1881–82 and in book form in 1882. In the same year there also appeared US ...

'' (1882),

*''Scottish land-names; their origin and meaning'' (1894),

Herbert Maxwell Sir Herbert Eustace Maxwell, 7th Baronet, (8 January 1845 – 30 October 1937) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, artist, antiquarian, horticulturalist, prominent salmon angler and author of books on angling and Conservative politician who ...

*''

The Lost Stradivarius ''The Lost Stradivarius'' (1895), by J. Meade Falkner, is a short novel of ghosts and the evil that can be invested in an object, in this case an extremely fine Stradivarius violin. It has been described as "one of Falkner's three celebrated nov ...

'' (1895),

J. Meade Falkner John Meade Falkner (8 May 1858 – 22 July 1932) was an English novelist and poet, best known for his 1898 novel '' Moonfleet''. An extremely successful businessman, he became chairman of the arms manufacturer Armstrong Whitworth durin ...

*''

My Brilliant Career ''My Brilliant Career'' is a 1901 novel written by Miles Franklin. It is the first of many novels by Stella Maria Sarah Miles Franklin (1879–1954), one of the major Australian writers of her time. It was written while she was still a teenager, ...

'' (1901), Miles Franklin *''

Youth Youth is the time of life when one is young. The word, youth, can also mean the time between childhood and adulthood ( maturity), but it can also refer to one's peak, in terms of health or the period of life known as being a young adult. You ...

'' (1902),

*''

William Wetmore Story and His Friends ''William Wetmore Story and His Friends'' is a biography of sculptor William Wetmore Story by Henry James, published in 1903. James concentrated on the "friends" of the title, who included Robert Browning, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, James Russe ...

'' (1903),

Henry James Henry James ( – ) was an American-British author. He is regarded as a key transitional figure between literary realism and literary modernism, and is considered by many to be among the greatest novelists in the English language. He was the ...

*''

Where Angels Fear to Tread ''Where Angels Fear to Tread'' (1905) is a novel by E. M. Forster. The title comes from a line in Alexander Pope's ''An Essay on Criticism'': "For fools rush in where angels fear to tread". The BBC adapted the novel for television in 1966 as ...

'' (1905), E. M. Forster *''Significant Etymology: Or, Roots, Stems, and Branches of the English Language'' (1908), James Mitchell *'' Prester John'' (1910),

*'' The Thirty-Nine Steps'' (1915), John Buchan *''

The Power-House ''The Power-House'' is a novel by John Buchan, a thriller set in London, England. It was written in 1913, when it was serialised in Blackwood's Magazine, and it was published in book form in 1916. The narrator is the barrister and Tory MP Edw ...

'' (1916), John Buchan *''The Dual Mandate in British Tropical Africa'' (1922), Frederick D. Lugard *'' The Courts of the Morning'' (1929), John Buchan *''

The Curve of Time ''The Curve of Time'' is a 1961 book by M. Wylie Blanchet recounting trips she took with her five children throughout the inland waterways between Vancouver Island and mainland British Columbia in the 1920s and 1930s. Through at least eleven edi ...

'' (1961),

M. Wylie Blanchet Muriel Wylie "Capi" Blanchet, née Muriel Wylie Liffiton (2 May 1891 – 28 September 1961) was a Canadians, Canadian travel literature, travel writer. She is best known for her 1961 book ''The Curve of Time'', which recounts summer tr ...

Book series published by Blackwood

* Ancient Classics for the English Reader * Foreign Classics for the English Reader * Periods of European Literature * Philosophical Classics for the English Reader

Works originally published in ''Blackwood's Magazine''

*''

Noctes Ambrosianae The ''Noctes Ambrosianae'', a series of 71 imaginary colloquies, appeared in ''Blackwood's Magazine'' from 1822 to 1835. The earlier ones had several different authors, including John Gibson Lockhart, William Maginn, James Hogg and Professor Joh ...

'' (1822 to 1835), James Hogg, John Gibson Lockhart,

William Maginn William Maginn (10 July 1794 – 21 August 1842) was an Irish journalist and writer. About Born at Cork he became a contributor to ''Blackwood's Magazine'', and after moving to London in 1824 became for a few months in 1826 the Paris correspond ...

, John Wilson et al. *''American Writers'' (1824-1825), John Neal *'' On Murder Considered as one of the Fine Arts'' (1827), Thomas De Quincey *''

The Iron Shroud "The Iron Shroud" or less commonly known as the "Italian Revenge" is a short story of Gothic fiction written by William Mudford in 1830 and published in ''Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine'' and also as a twenty four page chapbook. It is a classic A Pr ...

'' (1830), William Mudford *'' The English Mail-Coach'' (1849), Thomas De Quincey *''

The Battle of Dorking ''The Battle of Dorking: Reminiscences of a Volunteer'' is an 1871 novella by George Tomkyns Chesney, starting the genre of invasion literature and an important precursor of science fiction. Written just after the Prussian victory in the Franco ...

'' (1871),

*''

'' (1881),

*''

'' (1898),

*''

Heart of Darkness ''Heart of Darkness'' (1899) is a novella by Polish-English novelist Joseph Conrad in which the sailor Charles Marlow tells his listeners the story of his assignment as steamer captain for a Belgian company in the African interior. The novel ...

'' (1899), Joseph Conrad *''

Lord Jim ''Lord Jim'' is a novel by Joseph Conrad originally published as a serial in ''Blackwood's Magazine'' from October 1899 to November 1900. An early and primary event in the story is the abandonment of a passenger ship in distress by its crew, i ...

'' (1899), Joseph Conrad *'' The Highwayman'' (1906), Alfred Noyes *''

'' (1913),

References

;Attribution *

History

Books first published by Blackwood

Book series published by Blackwood

Works originally published in ''Blackwood's Magazine''

See also

References

Further reading