{"id":674,"date":"2025-02-14T23:22:11","date_gmt":"2025-02-14T23:22:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/historyofthebook2024\/?p=674"},"modified":"2025-02-14T23:22:11","modified_gmt":"2025-02-14T23:22:11","slug":"the-second-edition-and-afterlife-of-the-history-of-printing-in-america","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/historyofthebook2024\/2025\/02\/14\/the-second-edition-and-afterlife-of-the-history-of-printing-in-america\/","title":{"rendered":"The Second Edition and Afterlife of The History of Printing in America"},"content":{"rendered":"

Although Isaiah Thomas\u2019s History of Printing in America<\/em> was the first of its kind to compile American newspapers, pamphlets, books, and interviews from fellow printers to create a vital record, Thomas, the American Antiquarian Society, Benjamin Franklin Thomas (Isaiah Thomas\u2019s Grandson), and William McCulloch continued to improve upon the original text\u2014leading to the creation of the second edition. Two years after the publication of the first edition in 1810, McCulloch, one of Philadelphia\u2019s leading printers, wrote letters to Thomas, later published by the American Antiquarian Society as \u2018William McCulloch\u2019s Additions to Thomas\u2019s History of Printing\u201d in 1912. McCulloch highlighted the numerous factual inaccuracies, mostly concerning the printing history in Pennsylvania, within the two volumes and offered corrections and improvements from simple date, number, and name corrections to paragraphs dedicated to the lives of printers. He even suggests that Isaiah Thomas get rid of certain accounts (like the paper L\u2019Hemisphere on page 93 for its \u201cpoor catchpenny production,\u201d Folwell\u2019s \u201cSpirit of the Press\u201d and Helmbold\u2019s the Tickler,<\/em> stating on page 94 and without elaboration, \u201ctheir editors are the disgrace of civilization\u201d). Besides McColloch\u2019s strong opinions on the previous works, he does provide invaluable information to Thomas such as on page 93 where he writes, \u201cYou relate, in one place, that there are 400 Printing Offices in America, and in another of there being 350 Newspaper establishments. Is there not some clashing in this statement?\u201d and sharing his recording of printing houses in Philadelphia from 1803, \u201cThere were 45 offices keeping 89 presses. Of these printers, 15 were also booksellers.\u201d Thomas\u2019s numerous errors could be the product of being the first in America to record printing history and a lack of review from fellow printers; if McCulloch, being an experienced printer who can fact-check Thomas, never read Thomas\u2019s book, it is likely these errors would remain unchanged and consequentially misinform readers. According to the American Antiquarian Society, two years after McCulloch sent the letter, Thomas responds with a 296-page manuscript which will lay the foundation for the second edition.<\/p>\n

Thomas sadly passed away in 1831 at the age of 82, leaving the completion of The History of Printing in America<\/em>\u2019s second edition to his grandson, Benjamin Franklin Thomas, and the American Antiquarian Society, which was printed by Joel Munsell in 1847. The second edition heavily relied upon Thomas\u2019s memoranda with American Antiquarian Society members, John R. Bartlett and Samuel F. Haven Jr, expanding upon Isaiah Thomas\u2019s unfinished work. According to the preface in the second edition, one of the major changes to the first edition was Thomas\u2019s chapters on the origins of printing in the Old World, which were omitted from the book by the society. The preface states that these chapters are \u201cless adapted to the present state of information on that subject, as requiring too much modification and enlargement, as occupying space demanded for additional matter of an important character, and as not essential to the special object of presenting a history of the American Press.\u201d This explains the removal of chapters such as \u201cOrigin and practice of printing in China\u201d and \u201cIntroduction of Printing in England\u201d and the addition of chapters titled \u201cSpanish America,\u201d \u201cFrench America,\u201d \u201cDutch America,\u201d and \u201cPortuguese America;\u201d despite these chapters\u2019 importance to print culture before America, they stray away from the title of the book and take away pages that could potentially be used for further delving into American print. Continuing, Thomas was not satisfied with his account of Spanish American Printing and wished to further expand upon it, which could potentially be due to a language barrier or overall lack of information in his collection. Therefore, society member John R. Bartlett \u201chas given special attention to the subject\u201d and completed Thomas\u2019s research. Another change to the first edition that Thomas wished to fulfill was the mentioned in the preface of the first edition, in which Thomas states, \u201cIt was my design to have given a catalog of the books printed in the English colonies previous to the revolution; finding, however, that it would enlarge this work to another volume, 1 have deferred the publication, but it may appear hereafter.\u201d Samuel F. Haven Jr., another member of Thomas\u2019s Society, collected and examined books relating to Isaiah Thomas\u2019s research, which he would later compile in the second edition. Despite the major difference between editions, Isaiah Thomas\u2019s and the American Antiquarian Society\u2019s dedication to creating a well-researched and extensive new edition shows the importance of ensuring historical accuracy.<\/p>\n

The afterlife of the book continues on with the many reprints from publishers such as Burt Franklin in 1967, Weathervane Books in 1970, Johnson Reprint Corp. in 1971, and Nabu Public Domain Reprints in 2012\u2014all of them based on the second edition. Additionally, there are free digital copies of the first and second editions available online at the Internet Archive. To obtain a copy of the first edition of the book printed in 1810, buyers must part ways with about $3,000, according to Biblo.com, a rare book shopping website.<\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 The History of Printing in America<\/em> stands today as a testament to not only Isaiah Thomas\u2019s dedication to history but also the efforts of William McCulloch and the American Antiquarian Society, who shared Thomas\u2019s vision and helped him improve his work. The high prices for the physical copies of the book and the online accessibility emphasize its historical significance. The Dickinson Archive\u2019s copy of the first edition of Thomas\u2019s The History of Printing in America<\/em>, gifted to the Belles Lettres Society by Charles Wesley Pitman in 1837\u2014prior to the publication of the second edition\u2014stands as a valuable book for its rich history, academic significance, and being authored by one of the greatest printers of the 1800s.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Fig. 1. The Table of Contents in volume one of the first edition of The History of Printing in America.<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"

Fig 2. The Table of Contents from the second edition volume one of The History of Printing in America.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\"

Fig. 3. The Table of Contents from the first edition of volume two of The History of Printing in America<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\"

Fig 4. The Table of Contents from the second edition volume two of The History of Printing in America.<\/p><\/div>\n

Citations<\/span><\/p>\n

First Folio. \u201cTHE HISTORY OF PRINTING IN AMERICA. WITH A BIOGRAPHY OF PRINTERS, AND AN ACCOUNT OF NEWSPAPERS,\u201d Biblio,<\/em> 2025, https:\/\/www.biblio.com\/book\/history-printing-america-biography-printers-account\/d\/1420818339<\/p>\n

Accessed Feb 14, 2025<\/p>\n

McCulloch, William. \u201cWilliam McCulloch\u2019s Additions to Thomas\u2019s History of Printing.\u201d Proceedings of the American Antiquarian Society at the Semi-Annual Meeting Held in Boston<\/em>, vol. 31, The Davis Press Worcester, Mass., 1912, pp. 89\u2013100.<\/p>\n

\u201cSearch: This History of Printing in America by Isaiah Thomas.\u201d World Cat. <\/em>Online Computer Library Center, 2025,https:\/\/search.worldcat.org\/search?q=This+History+of+Printing+in+America+by+Isaiah+Thomas&author=Thomas%2C+Isaiah&itemSubType=book-printbook&itemSubTypeModified=book-printbook,<\/p>\n

Accessed Feb 14, 2025<\/p>\n

Thomas, Isaiah.\u00a0The History of Printing in America. With a Biography of Printers, and an Account of Newspapers. To Which Is Prefixed a Concise View of the Discovery and Progress of the Art in Other Parts of the World. In Two Volumes.<\/em>\u00a0the press of Isaiah Thomas, jun. Isaac Sturtevant, printer, 1810.<\/p>\n

Thomas, Isaiah, The history of printing in America : with a biography of printers, and an account of newspapers : to which is prefixed a concise view of the discovery and progress of the art in other parts of the world : in two volumes<\/em>, Volume 2, First Edition, The press of Isaiah Thomas, 1810, Internet Archive, https:\/\/archive.org\/details\/historyofprintin02inthom\/page\/n9\/mode\/2up, Accessed Feb 14, 2025<\/p>\n

Thomas, Isaiah, The history of printing in America, with a Biography of Printers, and an Account of Newspapers in Two Volumes<\/em>, Volume 1, Second Edition, The American Antiquarian Society, 1847, Internet Archive, https:\/\/archive.org\/details\/aey4217.0005.001.umich.edu\/page\/n11\/mode\/2up, Accessed Feb 14, 2025<\/p>\n

Thomas, Isaiah, The history of printing in America, with a Biography of Printers, and an Account of Newspapers in Two Volumes<\/em>, Volume 2, Second Edition, The American Antiquarian Society, 1847, Internet Archive, https:\/\/archive.org\/details\/aey4217.0002.001.umich.edu\/page\/n5\/mode\/2up, Accessed Feb 14, 2025<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Although Isaiah Thomas\u2019s History of Printing in America was the first of its kind to compile American newspapers, pamphlets, books, and interviews from fellow printers to create a vital record, Thomas, the American Antiquarian Society, Benjamin Franklin Thomas (Isaiah Thomas\u2019s Grandson), and William McCulloch continued to improve upon the original text\u2014leading to the creation of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5529,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-674","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-afterlives","post-preview"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/historyofthebook2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/674","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/historyofthebook2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/historyofthebook2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/historyofthebook2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5529"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/historyofthebook2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=674"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/historyofthebook2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/674\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/historyofthebook2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=674"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/historyofthebook2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=674"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/historyofthebook2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=674"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}