Tag: Harper & Brothers

1848: Harper & Brothers publishes the first American editions of the Brontë’s works

Harper & Brothers publishes the first American editions of Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre, and Anne Brontë's The Tenant of Wildfell Hall. More

The Wapshot Chronicle

Winner of the 1958 National Book Award, it established Cheever as a major American novelist. More

1917: Harper & Brothers releases the first-ever book and phonograph record “bundles”…

Harper & Brothers releases a series of 12 Bubble Books, the first-ever book and phonograph record “bundle,” featuring nursery rhymes like “Jack and Jill” and “Simple Simon.” More

Sympathy telegram to Coretta Scott King following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

The day after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (April 5, 1968), Harper honorary director Cass Canfield sent this telegram... More

Two Years Before the Mast

An early landmark of adventure and travel writing, now considered one of America’s first literary classics. More

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

Betty Smith's A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (1943), a story about growing up poor in turn-of-the-century Brooklyn, was originally an entry for a Harper & Brothers memoir contest. More

Garth Williams, Illustrator

Garth Williams was a little-known but talented young illustrator when he was commissioned by Ursula Nordstrom, head of Harper’s Department of Books for Boys and Girls, to illustrate the classic Stuart Little by E. B. White. More

Social Change: African American Identity in the U.S.

HarperCollins has published a number of books that explore the racial identity of African Americans during periods of great social conflict. More

Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ

The bestselling American novel of the nineteenth century; an epic tale of betrayal and honor. More

Stuart Little

White’s beloved classic about a small mouse on a big adventure is a perennial bestseller. More

The Harper Fire of 1853

The Harper offices in New York City were claimed by fire in 1853, when a plumber lit a lamp with a roll of paper and then attempted to extinguish the burning roll in a tub of water. More

“A Word of Apology” from Harper & Brothers regarding the Harper fire of 1853

In this “Word of Apology” published in Harper’s New Monthly Magazine in January 1854, the Harper brothers address the devastating fire that ruined their New York City offices on Cliff Street in late 1853. More

The Complete Works of Mark Twain: Authorized Edition

Twain worked directly with Harper & Brothers to produce this authorized edition of his works. More

1943: Betty Smith’s A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is published…

Betty Smith’s A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, a story about growing up poor in turn-of-the-century Brooklyn, shines a light on first- and second-generation Americans living in poverty. More

Profiles in Courage

Harper & Brothers helped groom the image of a future president when it agreed in the mid-1950s to work with a young senator on a collection of biographical sketches about courageous American lawmakers. More

1938: Harper & Brothers publishes Richard Wright’s debut story collection…

Harper & Brothers publishes Richard Wright’s debut story collection, Uncle Tom’s Children. More

Nostromo

A sweeping masterpiece considered by many to be Conrad’s greatest novel. More

1962: Harper & Brothers merges with Row, Peterson & Co. to form Harper & Row…

Harper & Brothers merges with textbook publisher Row, Peterson & Co. to form Harper & Row. More

The Publisher of presidents

HarperCollins is the publisher of many United States presidents–beginning with the very first one. More

Where the Wild Things Are

This winner of the 1964 Caldecott Medal changed the face of children’s literature. More

Brave New World

Huxley’s best-known novel; a prophetic classic of speculative fiction that continues to resonate. More

A Light in the Attic

Classic collection of poems and illustrations by Shel Silverstein; ALA Notable Children’s Book. More

Bleak House

Dickens’s tenth novel, often considered his finest; significantly influenced the development of mystery novels. More

1990: HarperCollins becomes the new global company name…

On May 29, 1990, HarperCollins becomes the new global name for the combined Harper & Row and Collins. More

The Steam-Powered Press

For years, the Harper brothers relied on a white draft horse named Dobbin, who plodded a circular path in the basement of their offices, turning a wooden shaft that powered the Treadwell hand press two floors above, until new technology sent him out to pasture. More

James Harper, Mayor Of New York City

With corruption rampant in New York City politics, the newly formed American Republican Party convinced James Harper, one of the brothers who had founded J. & J. Harper in 1817, to run for mayor. More

Publishing Firsts: The Rotary Press

American inventor Richard Hoe’s 1847 four-cylinder rotary press helped increase printing output tenfold, to 8,000 pages per hour. More