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Ward, Lock & Co. was a publishing house in the United Kingdom that started as a partnership and developed until it was eventually absorbed into the publishing combine of
Orion Publishing Group Orion Publishing Group Ltd. is a UK-based book publisher. It was founded in 1991 and acquired Weidenfeld & Nicolson the following year. The group has published numerous bestselling books by notable authors including Ian Rankin, Michael Connell ...
.


History

Ebenezer Ward and George Lock started a publishing concern in 1854 which became known as "Ward and Lock". Based originally in
Fleet Street Fleet Street is a street in Central London, England. It runs west to east from Temple Bar, London, Temple Bar at the boundary of the City of London, Cities of London and City of Westminster, Westminster to Ludgate Circus at the site of the Lo ...
, London it outgrew its offices and in 1878 moved completely to Salisbury Square, London. The firm's first office was at 158 Fleet Street. Fleet Street had an inviting architecture and atmosphere. It was full of businesses and people, coffee houses, taverns, and soup kitchens. It appealed to "publishers, printers, authors and tradesmen who occupied its houses and frequented its taverns." And it was always bustling with "innumerable trades, tradesmen and customers, coaches, wagons playhouses". Before founding Ward and Lock, Ward had worked as the manager of the book department at Herbert Ingram and Company. In 1855, Herbert Ingram and Company folded and Ward and Lock, with some help from their business partners Thomas Dixon Galpin and George William Petter, bought some of Ingram's "publications, including the copyrights, wood-blocks, stereotype plates and engravings
hat A hat is a Headgear, head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorpor ...
were put up for sale." Perhaps, the most important book from the Ingram catalogue was ''Webster's Dictionary of the English Language'', which Ward and Lock started reissuing with great success. By the 1870s, ''Webster's Dictionary'' had sold 140,000 copies. Other titles published by Ward and Lock around this time included books on travel, mechanics, and reprints of classical works, such as
Homer Homer (; , ; possibly born ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Despite doubts about his autho ...
's ''
Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; ) is one of two major epics of ancient Greek literature attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest surviving works of literature and remains popular with modern audiences. Like the ''Iliad'', the ''Odyssey'' is divi ...
'' and
Alexandre Dumas Alexandre Dumas (born Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, 24 July 1802 – 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas , was a French novelist and playwright. His works have been translated into many languages and he is one of the mos ...
' ''Pictures of Travel in the South of France''. By 1861, Ward and Lock had achieved enough success to be able to afford more staff and move into a new office at Amen Corner on
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 ...
. When Ward and Lock established their office in Paternoster Row it was already the home of "some of the most famous publishers in the country":
Rivington Rivington is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish of the Borough of Chorley, Lancashire, England, occupying . It is about southeast of Chorley and about northwest of Bolton. Rivington is a rural area consisting primarily 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 ...
, William Blackwood and Nelsons were some of the famous publishers with offices in the neighborhood. Ward and Lock continued to publish books at popular prices and started to issue atlases. Some of the authors the company published included
Mary Elizabeth Braddon Mary Elizabeth Braddon (4 October 1835 – 4 February 1915) was an English popular Novelists, novelist of the Victorian era. She is best known for her 1862 sensation novel ''Lady Audley's Secret'', which has also been dramatised and filmed seve ...
,
Charles Reade Charles Reade (8 June 1814 – 11 April 1884) was a British novelist and dramatist, best known for the 1861 historical novel '' The Cloister and the Hearth''. Life Charles Reade was born at Ipsden, Oxfordshire, to John Reade and Anne Marie Sco ...
and George Augustus Sala. With the help of Ward and Lock, Sala had, in 1860, started a magazine called ''Temple Bar'' – a "London magazine for Town and Country Readers". The magazine became very famous and in response to public demand, Ward and Lock published it in volume form, the first volume appearing in 1861. Charles T. Tyler joined Ward and Lock as a partner in 1865 and the firm became Ward, Lock and Tyler. Tyler seems to have brought capital to the company and was a financial adviser. "Tyler remained with the firm for eight years, ceasing to be a partner in 1873, when it reverted to Ward and Lock." In 1866, London publisher Samuel Orchart Beeton was obliged (as a result of the financial Panic of 1866) to sell his titles and name to Ward Lock; this gave them the rights to his late wife's ''
Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management ''Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management'', also published as ''Mrs. Beeton's Cookery Book'', is an extensive guide to running a household in Victorian Britain, edited by Isabella Beeton and first published as a book in 1861. Previously ...
''. In 1870, Ward, Lock and Tyler acquired E. Moxon, Son and Company. Moxon was a publishing firm that had published
Charles Lamb Charles Lamb (10 February 1775 – 27 December 1834) was an English essayist, poet, and antiquarian, best known for his '' Essays of Elia'' and for the children's book '' Tales from Shakespeare'', co-authored with his sister, Mary Lamb (1764†...
,
William Wordsworth William Wordsworth (7 April 177023 April 1850) was an English Romantic poetry, Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romanticism, Romantic Age in English literature with their joint publication ''Lyrical Balla ...
,
Alfred, Lord Tennyson Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson (; 6 August 1809 – 6 October 1892) was an English poet. He was the Poet Laureate during much of Queen Victoria's reign. In 1829, Tennyson was awarded the Chancellor's Gold Medal at Cambridge for one of ...
,
Robert Browning Robert Browning (7 May 1812 – 12 December 1889) was an English poet and playwright whose dramatic monologues put him high among the Victorian literature, Victorian poets. He was noted for irony, characterization, dark humour, social commentar ...
,
Robert Southey Robert Southey (; 12 August 1774 – 21 March 1843) was an English poet of the Romantic poetry, Romantic school, and Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, Poet Laureate from 1813 until his death. Like the other Lake Poets, William Wordsworth an ...
,
Benjamin Disraeli Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield (21 December 1804 â€“ 19 April 1881) was a British statesman, Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician and writer who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He played a ...
and a successful volume of poems illustrated by
J. M. W. Turner Joseph Mallord William Turner (23 April 177519 December 1851), known in his time as William Turner, was an English Romantic painter, printmaker and watercolourist. He is known for his expressive colouring, imaginative landscapes and turbu ...
and
Thomas Stothard Thomas Stothard (17 August 1755 – 27 April 1834) was a British painter, illustrator and engraver. His son, Robert T. Stothard was a painter (floruit, fl. 1810): he painted the proclamation outside York Minster of Queen Victoria's accession to ...
. The firm was led by Edward Moxon who was an influential poet and publisher, who had died in 1858. By buying the works published by Moxon and Beeton, Ward, Lock and Tyler expanded their connections with many famous poets and authors of the time. In 1873, Tyler left the company and it reverted to being Ward and Lock. Ward and Lock's catalogue was now extensive. The acquisition of Moxon meant that the firm had "the right to publish the Poet Laureate's works" and they published Tennyson's collected poems. The company's staff was now expanding and hence, in 1878, they built a new office called Warwick House. They published a lot of cheap reprints from here, as well as prize books for school in the 1880s. To cope with the demand of cheap reprints and prize books, the firm set up their own binding works on the top floor of Warwick House. In 1882, Ward and Lock started expanding to English-speaking markets in other countries. In 1882 offices were opened in New York City, and in 1884 in
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
. In 1885, Ward and Lock purchased
WH Smith WH Smith plc, trading as WHSmith (also written WH Smith and formerly as W. H. Smith & Son), is a British retailer, with headquarters in Swindon, England, which operates a chain of railway station, airport, port, hospital and motorway service st ...
's popular "Select Library of Fiction" series. In 1891, James Bowden came in to a three-way partnership. He had started working at Ward and Lock in 1869 and after he became a partner, the company became Ward, Lock and Bowden. "By the last decade on the 19th century, Messrs. Ward, Lock and Bowden were an important name on the publishing scene." Ebenezer Ward retired in 1883 and died in 1902. George Lock had died in 1891. None of Ward's children went into business. But Lock's family continued the business. "After George Lock's death the firm was carried on for two years by James Bowden and John Lock under the title of Ward Lock, Bowden & Company. Then, in 1893, it was converted into a limited company with the title of Ward Lock and Bowden Ltd." In the 1887 '' Beeton's Christmas Annual'' (published in November)
Arthur Conan Doyle Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle (22 May 1859 â€“ 7 July 1930) was a British writer and physician. He created the character Sherlock Holmes in 1887 for ''A Study in Scarlet'', the first of four novels and fifty-six short stories about Hol ...
's first
detective novel Detective fiction is a subgenre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an investigator or a detective—whether professional, amateur or retired—investigates a crime, often murder. The detective genre began around the same time as specu ...
, ''
A Study in Scarlet ''A Study in Scarlet'' is an 1887 Detective fiction, detective novel by British writer Arthur Conan Doyle. The story marks the first appearance of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, who would go on to become one of the most well-known detective ...
'', was published, introducing the consulting detective
Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a Detective fiction, fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a "Private investigator, consulting detective" in his stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with obser ...
and his friend and chronicler
Dr. Watson Dr. John H. Watson is a fictional character in the Sherlock Holmes stories by Arthur Conan Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Along with Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson first appeared in the novel ''A Study in Scarlet'' (1887). "The Adventure of Shosc ...
. Ward Lock and Bowden's business in New York and Melbourne were doing well and in the mid-1890s, the company opened an office in
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
, Canada; however, this was closed in 1919. The books published by the firm reflected the changes in English life. These included
Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Fflahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish author, poet, and playwright. After writing in different literary styles throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular and influential playwright ...
's ''
The Picture of Dorian Gray ''The Picture of Dorian Gray'' is an 1890 philosophical fiction and Gothic fiction, Gothic horror fiction, horror novel by Irish writer Oscar Wilde. A shorter novella-length version was published in the July 1890 issue of the American period ...
'', George Meredith's ''The Tragic Comedians'', Joseph Hocking's ''All Men are Liars'',
Guy Boothby Guy Newell Boothby (13 October 1867 – 26 February 1905) was a prolific Australian novelist and writer, noted for sensational fiction in variety magazines around the end of the nineteenth century. He lived mainly in England. He is best known fo ...
's In Strange Company and George Hutchinson's ''Winning a Wife in Australia''. Besides fiction, the firm also published educational material. They were involved in "popularizing general and specialized knowledge", publishing material such as ''Illustrated History of the World'', ''Self-culture for All'', ''The World's Inhabitants'', ''Worthies of the World'' and more. Responding to the growth in railway lines and love for travel, Ward Lock and Bowden introduced their series of guides books to the British Isles in 1896. They were priced at a shilling. As of 1954, some 136 Ward Lock travel guides, also known as ''Red Guides'', existed. In 1900, the firm bought A.D. Innes and Company – famous for publishing sports books. In 1895, the company launched '' The Windsor Magazine'' – it introduced to the public a new style of magazine, that was for everyone, not just the upper or upper-middle classes. The magazine continued for nearly 45 years. ''The Windsor Magazine'' published novels in installments and also verse and was one of the firm's biggest successes. James Bowden retired in 1897. By 1901, the firm went by Ward, Lock & Co., Limited. Its motto was "full steam ahead". The firm published major authors, but also took a "middle-brow" approach to fiction. They published in book form the novels of authors which had been published in installments in ''The Windsor Magazine''. In 1909, the Melbourne office celebrated 25 years. In 1911, a fire destroyed large parts of Warwick House, but by 1913, a new Warwick House was built, which was larger than the earlier establishment. In 1914, the firm celebrated their Diamond Jubilee. In the 1920s, the firm expanded its list of juvenile literature to children's fiction and coloring books. They also continued to publish crime and detective stories, with books by authors like E. Phillips Oppenheim,
Edgar Wallace Richard Horatio Edgar Wallace (1 April 1875 – 10 February 1932) was a British writer of crime and adventure fiction. Born into poverty as an illegitimate London child, Wallace left school at the age of 12. He joined the army at age 21 and was ...
and
Leslie Charteris Leslie Charteris (; born Leslie Charles Bowyer-Yin; 12 May 1907 – 15 April 1993), was a British-Chinese author of adventure fiction, as well as a screenwriter.Dornford Yates Cecil William Mercer (7 August 1885 – 5 March 1960), known by his pen name Dornford Yates, was an English writer and novelist whose novels and short stories, some humorous (the ''Berry'' books), some Thriller (genre), thrillers (the ''Chandos ...
was one of Ward, Lock's most popular authors around this time. Around this time, Ward, Lock also published
Mary Grant Bruce Mary Grant Bruce (born Minnie Grant Bruce, 24 May 1878 – 2 July 1958), was an Australian children's author and journalist. While all her thirty-seven books enjoyed popular success in Australia and overseas, particularly in the United Kingdom, ...
's highly successful ''Billabong'' series of books, starting with ''A Little Bush Maid'' in 1911. The period between the two World Wars was tough on publishers. Warwick House was bombed twice during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, the second time, the building was almost completely destroyed. The firm temporarily relocated to Unilever House on the Embankment, before moving into an office in Salisbury Square. In 1946, Ward, Lock and Company moved into an office in 6,
Chancery Lane Chancery Lane is a one-way street that forms part of the City of London#Boundary, western boundary of the City of London. The east side of the street is entirely within the City,Norfolk Street, New Court, and Salisbury Square. In 1964, the business split in two, creating Ward Lock Educational Co Ltd, which was bought by Cassell Publishing in 1989. By the early 1990s, Cassell was acquired by the current owner,
Orion Publishing Group Orion Publishing Group Ltd. is a UK-based book publisher. It was founded in 1991 and acquired Weidenfeld & Nicolson the following year. The group has published numerous bestselling books by notable authors including Ian Rankin, Michael Connell ...
.


Trading names

*Ward and Lock – 1852 to 1891 *Ward, Lock & Tyler — 1862 to 1873 *Ward, Lock and Bowden Company – 1891 to 1893 *Ward Lock and Bowden Ltd. – 1893 to 1897 *Ward, Lock & Co., Limited – 1897 to present


Authors

*
Jules Verne Jules Gabriel Verne (;''Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet and playwright. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the ''Voyages extraor ...
* Andrew Forrester *
Daniel Defoe Daniel Defoe (; born Daniel Foe; 1660 – 24 April 1731) was an English writer, merchant and spy. He is most famous for his novel ''Robinson Crusoe'', published in 1719, which is claimed to be second only to the Bible in its number of translati ...
* R. M. Ballantyne * Isabella Beeton *
Edward Bulwer-Lytton Edward George Earle Lytton Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton (; 25 May 1803 – 18 January 1873) was an English writer and politician. He served as a Whig member of Parliament from 1831 to 1841 and a Conservative from 1851 to 1866. He was Secr ...
*
Leslie Charteris Leslie Charteris (; born Leslie Charles Bowyer-Yin; 12 May 1907 – 15 April 1993), was a British-Chinese author of adventure fiction, as well as a screenwriter.Thomas Hughes Thomas Hughes (20 October 1822 – 22 March 1896) was an English lawyer, judge, politician and author. He is most famous for his novel ''Tom Brown's School Days'' (1857), a semi-autobiographical work set at Rugby School, which Hughes had atte ...
* Nigel Tranter: early novels (1937–1956) and westerns (published under the pseudonym 'Nye Tredgold', 1950–1958) *
Dornford Yates Cecil William Mercer (7 August 1885 – 5 March 1960), known by his pen name Dornford Yates, was an English writer and novelist whose novels and short stories, some humorous (the ''Berry'' books), some Thriller (genre), thrillers (the ''Chandos ...
*
Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Fflahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish author, poet, and playwright. After writing in different literary styles throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular and influential playwright ...
*
Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet, mathematician, photographer and reluctant Anglicanism, Anglican deacon. His most notable works are ''Alice ...
* E. Phillips Oppenheim *
Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 â€“ 19 April 1882) was an English Natural history#Before 1900, naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all speci ...
, M.A., F.R.S. * Ottwell Binns


Titles

Some famous books were published by Ward Lock: *'' Among The Cannibals'' by
Jules Verne Jules Gabriel Verne (;''Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet and playwright. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the ''Voyages extraor ...
*"
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 ...
" by
Daniel Defoe Daniel Defoe (; born Daniel Foe; 1660 – 24 April 1731) was an English writer, merchant and spy. He is most famous for his novel ''Robinson Crusoe'', published in 1719, which is claimed to be second only to the Bible in its number of translati ...
*''
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (also known as ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English Children's literature, children's novel by Lewis Carroll, a mathematics university don, don at the University of Oxford. It details the story of a ...
'' by
Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet, mathematician, photographer and reluctant Anglicanism, Anglican deacon. His most notable works are ''Alice ...
*''
A Study in Scarlet ''A Study in Scarlet'' is an 1887 Detective fiction, detective novel by British writer Arthur Conan Doyle. The story marks the first appearance of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, who would go on to become one of the most well-known detective ...
'' *''Martin Rattler'' by R. M. Ballantyne (reprint) *'' Meet the Tiger'' (the first book featuring The Saint) *''
Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management ''Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management'', also published as ''Mrs. Beeton's Cookery Book'', is an extensive guide to running a household in Victorian Britain, edited by Isabella Beeton and first published as a book in 1861. Previously ...
'' *''
The Picture of Dorian Gray ''The Picture of Dorian Gray'' is an 1890 philosophical fiction and Gothic fiction, Gothic horror fiction, horror novel by Irish writer Oscar Wilde. A shorter novella-length version was published in the July 1890 issue of the American period ...
'' by
Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Fflahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish author, poet, and playwright. After writing in different literary styles throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular and influential playwright ...
*'' Pilgrim's Progress'' (reprint) *'' Seven Little Australians'' * *''
Tom Brown's School Days ''Tom Brown's School Days'' (sometimes written ''Tom Brown's Schooldays'', also published under the titles ''Tom Brown at Rugby'', ''School Days at Rugby'', and ''Tom Brown's School Days at Rugby'') is a novel by Thomas Hughes, published in 1 ...
'' by
Thomas Hughes Thomas Hughes (20 October 1822 – 22 March 1896) was an English lawyer, judge, politician and author. He is most famous for his novel ''Tom Brown's School Days'' (1857), a semi-autobiographical work set at Rugby School, which Hughes had atte ...
*''Harold, the Last of the Saxons'' by
Edward Bulwer-Lytton Edward George Earle Lytton Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton (; 25 May 1803 – 18 January 1873) was an English writer and politician. He served as a Whig member of Parliament from 1831 to 1841 and a Conservative from 1851 to 1866. He was Secr ...
(3rd edition) * ''A Daughter of the Marionis'' (1895) by E Phillips Oppenheim * Darwin's Voyage in the Beagle (Ninth Edition, 1890) * ''Grammar Made Gay'' by Winifred Watson The '' Windsor Magazine'' was published monthly from January 1895 until September 1939 (537 issues).


Book series


References


Further reading

* Edward Liveing,
Adventure in Publishing: The House of Ward Lock 1854–1954
' (London: Ward, Lock & Co., 1954)


External links



{{DEFAULTSORT:Ward Lock and Co Book publishing companies of the United Kingdom Publishing companies established in 1854