Born in Cumberland in 1812, George Routledge was to become a major influence in British publishing for over two hundred years. The "Routledge" name is still used today.
From humble beginnings working in a Carlisle bookshop, Routledge combined a passion for books with hard work and a clear understanding of commerce. Thurman and Sons, a firm started in the city by Charles Thurman, was a bookseller, printer and stationer and was to become an important part of the Carlisle social history. Founded in 1816, Thurmans was to trade until 2008 (the year of the banking crash), when insolvency struck. George Routledge joined the firm as an apprentice in 1827. The timeline below commences when young George began to spread his wings:
Timeline:
1833 George Routledge moves to London to set up his own business as a bookseller. Although based in London from here on, he went on to have offices in other British cities like Manchester and Glasgow, and in New York
1836-43 Traded from 11, Ryders Court, London
1836 Entered the world of publishing on a part time basis, in association with his brother-in-law William Henry Warne. The first book published by Routledge was a guide book: The Beauties of Gisland. It was not a commercial success
1843-51 Traded from 36, Soho Square, London
1843 George Routledge becomes a full-time publisher
1848 Entered the lucrative market for cheap imprints, mainly of fictional works. At a shilling each, these were largely sold to travellers on the growing railway network through W.H. Smith, a British bookseller and stationer still operational today. The Routledge "Railway Library" books were published until 1899
1851 George Routledge and Co was formed - a more formal approach which recognised the success of the cheap editions. Another important British publisher, Frederick Warne, the brother of William Henry Warne, joined the company
1852-64 Traded from Farringdon Street, London
1858 The company becomes known as Routledge, Warne and Routledge after Robert Warne Routledge (George's son) joins the firm
1859 William Henry Warne died at the age of 37. This was an important event as it led his brother Frederick to leave the firm, taking with him rights to some of the company's publications. In 1865, Frederick Warne & Co was founded
1865-1913 Traded from Broadway, Ludgate Hill
1865 Edmund, another of George's sons became a partner in the firm which was renamed George Routledge and Sons
1888 George Routledge died
1899 The company was close to bankruptcy and the "Railway Library" series came to a halt. So began a long period of restructuring
1903 Merged with J.C. Nimmo Ltd
1912 Began managing Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co
1912 Moving more and more away from their origins, the company increasingly published academic books
1913-25 Trading from Broadway House, Carter Lane, London
1947 Merger with Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co, the new company known as Routledge and Kegan Paul
1985 Routledge and Kegan Paul becomes a part of Associated Book Publishers
1987 Bought out by International Thomson, although the Routledge name was still used
1996 Routledge becomes independent again following a management buy-out
1998 Another takeover, this time by Taylor & Francis Group. The Routledge name is retained as an imprint and sub division
2004 Taylor & Francis merges with Informa Plc. Routledge remains a publishing entity and an imprint of Informa's Academic Publishing department
Bibliography
Below are some examples of books published by the Routledge brand over the years. These are books which have recently been up for sale. It should be remembered that there are many factors which can affect the value of a book.
If you need values in US dollars, Euros or a host of other major currencies, a currency converter is included in the right hand sidebar of this page, and another in the footer area.
1836 Narrative of a Journey to the Shores of the Arctic Ocean by Richard
King in two volumes, 1st edition, full leather binding, in fine condition, £9,900
1851 Scarlet Letter and the House of the Seven Gables, complete in one volume, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, with an illustration by John Gilbert, 1st combined edition, in VG condition, £1,500
1854 Personal Narraive of Explorations & Incidents in Texas, New Mexico, California, Sonora, and Chihuahua, by John Russell Bartlett, in two volumes, three quarter crushed morocco binding by Bayntun, 1st edition in VG condition, £1,900
1857 The Garies and Their Friends by Frank Webb, 1st edition, £5,500
1858 British Columbia and Vancouver Island; Comprising a Historical Sketch of the British Settlements in the North-West Coast of America and a Survey of the Physical Character, Capabilities, Climate, Topography, Natural History, Geology and Ethnology of the Region; Compiled from Official and Other Authentic Sources, compiled and edited by William Carew Hazlitt, 1st edition, in VG condition, £1,500
1862-3 The Illustrated Natural History, Mammalia, Birds, Fishes, Molluscs, Reptiles...., in three volumes, by J.G. Wood, bound in Morocco leather, in VG condition, £1,150
1863 Birket Foster's Pictures of English Landscape by Tom Taylor with pictures by Birket Foster, engravings by the Brothers Dalziel, 1st edition, printed on India paper and bound in red morocco, £3,000
1867 The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County: And Other Sketches, bound together with the Innocents at Home, by Mark Twain and edited by John Paul, 1st edition, re-bound in red cloth, in VG condition, £1,800
1875 A Journey to the North Pole / The Field of Ice, (The Adventures of Captain Hatteras), in two volumes, by Jules Verne, 1st British editions, £1,200
1888 The Pied Piper of Hamelin by Robert Browning and illustrated by Kate Greenaway, 1st edition, VG condition in a VG dust jacket, £2,200
1891 Chivalry by Leon Gautier and translated by Henry Frith, 1st edition, finely bound in half crimson morocco by Bayntun, in VG condition, £1,500
1892 Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan, with 110 illustrations and 12 colour plates by J. D. Watson, finely bound in full morocco, in fine condition, £1,900
1914 Dracula's Guest and Other Weird Stories by
Bram Stoker, in good condition with a poor dust jacket, £3,500
1931 Prices and Production by Friedrich A. Hayek, illustrated throughout with charts, 1st edition, in VG condition, £1,400
1937 For Your Convenience by Paul Pry (Thomas Burke), 1st edition in fine condition, no dust jacket, £2,500
1938 To Beg I Am Ashamed by Sheila Cousins (Graham Greene and Ronald Matthews), 1st edition, VG condition in VG dust jacket, £1,500
1938 Murphy by Samuel Beckett, 1st edition, second issue binding, cloth binding with clam shell case, in very good condition, £3,100
1940 Maigret Abroad by Georges Simenon, 1st UK edition in VG condition with a good dust jacket, £2,150
1942 In Two Latitudes by Georges Simenon, 1st UK edition, in VG condintion with a VG dust jacket, £1,350
1944 The Road to Serfdom by F.A. Hayek, 1st edition, in good condition, £1,500
1945 The Open Society and Its Enemies, by K.R. Popper, in two volumes, in good condition (no jackets), £1,300
1973 Law, Legislation and Liberty - A New Statement of the Liberal Principles of Justice and Political Economy, a three volume set, by F.A. Hayek, 1st edition, in fine condition with a VG dust jacket, £2,100
1993 Companion Encyclopedia of the History of Medicine (Routledge Companion Encyclopedias) , in two volumes, 1st editions, in fine condition, £1,175
1998 Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy, edited by Edward Craig, in ten volumes, 1st edition, no dust jackets (believed as issued), in VG condition, £1,500