Jacob Abbott (November 14, 1803 – October 31, 1879) was an American writer of children's books.

Early life

On November 14, 1803, Abbott was born in Hallowell, Maine to Jacob Abbott II and Betsey Chandler. He attended the Hallowell Academy.

Education

Abbott graduated from

Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. When Bowdoin was chartered in 1794, Maine was still a part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The college offers 34 majors and 36 minors, as well as several joint eng ...

in 1820. At some point during his years there, he supposedly added the second "t" to his surname, to avoid being "Jacob Abbot the 3rd" (although one source notes he did not actually begin signing his name with two t's until several years later). Abbott studied at Andover Theological Seminary in 1821, 1822, and 1824. He taught at

Portland Academy Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

and was a tutor in

Amherst College Amherst College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zephaniah Swift Moore, Amherst is the third oldest institution of higher educatio ...

during the next year.

Career

From 1825 to 1829 Abbott was professor of mathematics and natural philosophy at

; was licensed to preach by the Hampshire Association in 1826; founded the Mount Vernon School for Young Ladies in Boston in 1829, and was principal of it in 1829–1833; was pastor of Eliot Congregational Church (which he founded), at Roxbury, Massachusetts in 1834–1835; and was, with his brothers, a founder, and in 1843–1851 a principal of Abbott's Institute, and in 1845–1848 of the Mount Vernon School for Boys, in New York City. He was a prolific author, writing juvenile fiction, brief histories, biographies, religious books for the general reader, and a few works in popular science. He wrote 180 books and was a coauthor or editor of 31 more. He died in Farmington, Maine, where he had spent part of his time after 1839, and where his brother, Samuel Phillips Abbott, founded the Abbott School. His ''Rollo Books'', such as ''Rollo at Play'' and ''Rollo in Europe'', are the best known of his writings, having as their chief characters a representative boy and his associates. In them Abbott did for one or two generations of young American readers a service not unlike that performed earlier, in England and

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, by the authors of ''Evenings at Home'', ''

The History of Sandford and Merton ''The History of Sandford and Merton'' (1783–89) was a best-selling children's book written by Thomas Day. He began it as a contribution to Richard Lovell and Honora Sneyd Edgeworth's ''Harry and Lucy'', a collection of short stories for child ...

'', and '' The Parent's Assistant''. To follow up his Rollo books, he wrote of ''Uncle George'', using him to teach the young readers about ethics, geography, history, and science. He also wrote 22 volumes of biographical histories and a 10 volume set titled the '' Franconia Stories''. His intention was to both amuse and educate, shown by this quotation from the Preface of ''Bruno'':

The books, though called story books, are not intended to be works of amusement merely to those who may receive them, but of substantial instruction. The successive volumes will comprise a great variety, both in respect to the subjects which they treat, and to the form and manner in which the subjects will be presented; but the end and aim of all will be to impart useful knowledge, to develop the thinking and reasoning powers, to teach a correct and discriminating use of language, to present models of good conduct for imitation, and bad examples to be shunned, to explain and enforce the highest principles of moral duty, and, above all, to awaken and cherish the spirit of humble and unobtrusive, but heartfelt piety.

His brothers, John Stevens Cabot Abbott and Gorham Dummer Abbott, were also authors. His sons,

Benjamin Vaughan Abbott Benjamin Vaughan Abbott (June 4, 1830 – February 17, 1890) was an American lawyer and author noted for his efforts in drawing up the New York penal code. Early life On June 4, 1830, Abbott was born in Boston, Massachusetts. Abbott's father ...

Austin Abbott Austin Abbott, LL.D. (December 18, 1831 – April 19, 1896) was a lawyer and academic. He is probably best remembered as being the government counsel in the trial of Charles J. Guiteau for the assassination of President James Garfield. Early l ...

, both eminent lawyers, Lyman Abbott, and Edward Abbott, a clergyman, were also well-known authors. See his ''Young Christian, Memorial Edition, with a Sketch of the Author'' by Edward Abbott with a bibliography of his works. Other works of note: ''Lucy Books'', ''Jonas Books'', ''Harper's Story Books'', ''Marco Paul'', ''Gay Family'', and ''Juno Books''.

Personal life

On May 18, 1829, Abbott married Harriet Vaughan. He had four sons;

, Edward Abbott,

and Lyman Abbott.

Select Bibliography

Biographies

* Alexander the Great (1878) * Alfred the Great * King Charles I * King Charles II * Cleopatra * Cyrus the Great (1878) * Darius * Queen Elizabeth * Genghis Khan * Hannibal * Hortense * Josephine * Julius Caesar * Margaret of Anjou * Mary, Queen of Scots * Nero * Peter the Great * Pyrrhus * Richard I * Richard II * Richard III * Romulus * William the Conqueror * Xerxes

American History Series

* Aboriginal America (1860) * Discovery of America (1860) * Southern Colonies (1860) * Northern Colonies (1862) * Wars of the Colonies (1863) * Revolt of the Colonies (1864) * War of the Revolution (1864) * Washington (1865)

Educational fiction

*''Rollo's Experiments'' (1839) *''Rollo Learning to Read'' (1847) *''Rollo at Work or, The Way to Be Industrious'' (1848) *''Rollo at Play or, Safe Amusements'' (1850) *''Rollo in London'' (1854) *''Bruno or, Lessons of Fidelity, Patience, and Self-Denial Taught by a Dog'' (1854) *''Cousin Lucy's Conversations'' (1854) *''Rollo in the Woods'' (1857) *''Georgie'' (1857) ote: dates may be revised editions

References

Additional sources

External links

*
Portrait clipping of Jacob Abbott from The New York Public Library Digital Collections

Appleton's Cyclopedia of American Biography, edited by James Grant Wilson, John Fiske and Stanley L. Klos. Six volumes, New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1887–1889
* * *
Works by Jacob Abbott
at Online Books {{DEFAULTSORT:Abbott, Jacob 1803 births 1879 deaths American children's writers Writers from Maine Abbott family People from Hallowell, Maine People from Farmington, Maine Bowdoin College alumni 19th-century American male writers