Thomas Longman (1699 – 18 June 1755) was an English publisher who founded the publishing house of

Longman Longman, also known as Pearson Longman, is a publisher, publishing company founded in 1724 in London, England, which is owned by Pearson PLC. Since 1968, Longman has been used primarily as an imprint by Pearson's Schools business. The Longman ...

Biography

Longman was born at

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

, the son of Ezekiel Longman and his second wife Sarah. The Longman family had been involved in the manufacture of soap for several generations and his father owned a shop and stalls in Temple Street. Longman's parents had died by the time he was nine. His father requested in his will that he be "especially well and handsomely bred and educated". From his mother he inherited a considerable amount of property at Winford, Winfrith, Rudghill, and Stroud. When Longman was seventeen his guardians - his brother Ezekiel, Nathaniel Webb, and Mrs. Thomas Coules - apprenticed him for seven years to John Osbom, a bookseller in

Lombard Street, London Lombard Street () is a street notable for its connections with the City of London's merchant, banking and insurance industries, stretching back to medieval times. From Bank junction, where nine streets converge by the Bank of England, Lombard ...

. In 1724, when his apprenticeship was ended, he purchased the business of John Taylor or William Taylor, a bookseller in

Paternoster Row Paternoster Row is 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 call ...

for . Taylor had been the first publisher of ''

Robinson Crusoe ''Robinson Crusoe'' ( ) is an English adventure novel by Daniel Defoe, first published on 25 April 1719. Written with a combination of Epistolary novel, epistolary, Confessional writing, confessional, and Didacticism, didactic forms, the ...

'', and traded at the sign of the ''

Ship A ship is a large watercraft, vessel that travels the world's oceans and other Waterway, navigable waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research and fishing. Ships are generally disti ...

'' and ''

Black Swan The black swan (''Cygnus atratus'') is a large Anatidae, waterbird, a species of swan which breeds mainly in the southeast and southwest regions of Australia. Within Australia, the black swan is nomadic, with erratic migration patterns dependent ...

''. In time, John Osborn entered into partnership with Longman, and they traded as ' J. Osborn & T. Longman' at the sign of the ''Ship''. They were among the original shareholders of the '' Cyclopaedia, or an Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences'' of Ephraim Chambers, which became very successful and profitable. When Osborn, whose daughter became the wife of Longman, died in about 1734, Longman became sole owner of the business. He steadily increased the business by buying shares in sound literary properties. In 1740, he published the third volume of

David Hume David Hume (; born David Home; – 25 August 1776) was a Scottish philosopher, historian, economist, and essayist who was best known for his highly influential system of empiricism, philosophical scepticism and metaphysical naturalism. Beg ...

's first work, '' A Treatise of Human Nature'', after he had been introduced to Hume by Francis Hutcheson. In 1744, he held the largest number of shares of Chambers's 'Cyclopaedia', owning nearly a sixth. He was one of the six booksellers, who entered into an agreement with

Samuel Johnson Samuel Johnson ( – 13 December 1784), often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, literary critic, sermonist, biographer, editor, and lexicographer. The ''Oxford ...

to produce an English dictionary, the 'Plan' of which was issued in 1747. In 1753, he took into partnership his nephew Thomas, who carried on the business. Longman married Mary Osborn, daughter of John Osborn in 1731. They had no children. Longman died, apparently childless, on 18 June 1755.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Longman, Thomas 1699 births 1755 deaths Publishers (people) from London Businesspeople from Bristol