The 12-volume ''Universal Cyclopaedia'' was edited by

Charles Kendall Adams Charles Kendall Adams (January 24, 1835 – July 26, 1902) was an American educator and historian. He served as the second president of Cornell University from 1885 until 1892, and as president of the University of Wisconsin from 1892 until 1901. ...

, and was published by D. Appleton & Company in 1900. The name was changed to ''Universal Cyclopaedia and Atlas'' in 1902, with editor .

History

This was the culmination of a series of encyclopedic projects that began in 1875-78 with the publication of ''Johnsons New Universal Cyclopedia'' in four volumes by A. J. Johnson and Sons. A revised version was printed in 8 volumes in 1884, though "no revisions of note had been implemented. The original Editors in Chief were

Frederick Augustus Porter Barnard Frederick Augustus Porter Barnard (May 5, 1809 – April 27, 1889) was an American academic and educator who served as the 10th President of Columbia University. Born in Sheffield, Massachusetts, he graduated from Yale University in 1828 and ser ...

and

Arnold Henry Guyot Arnold Henry Guyot ( ) (September 28, 1807February 8, 1884) was a Swiss-American geologist and geographer. Early life Guyot was born on September 28, 1807, at Boudevilliers, near Neuchâtel, Switzerland. He was educated at Chaux-de-Fonds, th ...

From 1893-1897 it was republished as ''Johnsons Universal Encyclopedia''. The encyclopedia was sold to D. Appleton & Company midway through the project, sovols. 2, 3, 4, 6 and 7 - the first to be published - retain the Johnson imprint, whiles vols. 1, 5 and 8 were published under the Appleton imprint. The editor of this edition was

, president of

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...

. In 1900 the encyclopedia was revised again by Adams and expanded to 12 volumes. As Johnson was no longer involved, this edition was published as ''Universal Cyclopaedia'', which is described as one of the best encyclopedias of the time. Further editions were published in 1901, 1903 and 1905. Upon Adams' death in 1902, editorial duties were taken over by

Rossiter Johnson Rossiter Johnson (27 January 1840 – 3 October 1931) was an American author and editor. He edited several important encyclopedias, dictionaries, and books, and was one of the first editors to publish "pocket" editions of the classics. He was als ...

In the "Publisher's Announcement" in Volume I of the original edition, A. J. Johnson stated that Horace Greeley suggested the plan for the work and urged its publication, and was a primary advisor. Greeley is listed as an associate editor. One of Greeley's requirements was that the cyclopaedia "be pre-eminently a book of facts, and to a very limited extent, if at all, a volume of discussions or of critical opinions." There was some protest against the depiction of Catholic doctrine and practices in the ''Universal Cyclopaedia and Atlas''.

History

References

Further reading