McLoughlin Brothers

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Goose Game of McLoughlin Brothers

McLoughlin Brothers was a major New York children's book and games publisher between 1858 and 1920 .

The publisher was one of the first to use color illustrations for children's books. Many illustrators became known through McLoughlin's publications.

history

John McLoughlin Sr.

John McLoughlin , a Scottish emigrant and coach builder, worked for the Sterling Iron Company , where he came into contact with Robert Hoe , a manufacturer of printing presses. After McLoughlin worked for the New York Times in 1827 , he bought a used hand press and a few briefs in 1828, and in the same year produced his first children's magazine. In 1840 he joined with his competitors Robert H. Elton of New York-based company Elton & Co. This company made u. a. Picture books and comics. McLoughlin's son John McLoughlin Jr. (* 1827; † 1905) learned wood engraving and letterpress printing there as a teenager and also became a partner of the company at the age of 21.

John McLoughlin Jr.

When Robert H. Elton and John McLoughlin Sr. withdrew from the business in 1850/51, John McLoughlin Jr. took over the business. He changed the company's name to John McLoughlin, Successor to Elton & Co. and also published children's books. He soon took over the printing forms from Edward Dunigan , a New York picture book publisher for whom Robert H. Elton did a lot of wood engraving.

The heyday

Game from 1885
Children's book from 1886
Children's book from 1890
Paper houses from 1897

In 1855 his younger brother Edmund McLoughlin (* 1833/34; † 1889) became a partner of John McLoughlin, but McLoughlin Bros. was not officially listed as a company until 1858. The product range was expanded to include games, paper dolls, other toys and other books. John McLoughlin Jr. inherited the talent for making children's books from his father and continued to experiment with various techniques of color illustration. He was the first and for a long time the only publisher in America to publish books with color illustrations. Due to its great success, the company changed its location within New York in 1863 and 1870 and opened a new headquarters in New York in 1871. Also in 1871, McLoughlin Brothers opened a color printing factory in Brooklyn. This factory employed up to 75 people and was the largest of its kind in the United States. Initially, the company mostly copied books from British publishers and illustrators such as Randolph Caldecott , Kate Greenaway and Walter Crane . Later there were several American illustrators who worked for McLoughlin Brothers. McLoughlin's main illustrator was Thomas Nast . After Nast, other famous artists such as Palmer Cox , Justin H. Howard , Helena Maguire , GA Davis , Jessie Willcox Smith , William Momberger , Ida Waugh, and Howard Pyle were hired to increase McLoughlin's success. However, many works were published without any information from the artist.

After Edmund McLoughlin retired in 1885, John McLoughlin Jr. ran the company with the help of his sons James Gregory McLoughlin and Charles McLoughlin . From 1886 u. a. Folk books, large picture books, linen books, puzzles, games and paper dolls published.

Death of John McLoughlin Jr.

After the death of John McLoughlin Jr. in 1905, his sons James Gregory and Charles took over the company. McLoughlin Brothers, however, now lost the lead both artistically and commercially. In 1919, both left the company and HF Stewart became president of the company while Gregory McLoughlin , son of James Gregory McLoughlin, became vice president.

Milton Bradley

In 1920, McLoughlin Brothers was sold to main competitor Milton Bradley and the Brooklyn factory was closed. Production was relocated to Springfield, Massachusetts . After the sale, picture books continued to be made, but fewer games. In the 1930s, McLoughlin Brothers had success with the Jolly Jump-Ups mechanical paper toys . During the Second World War, the production of the McLoughlin division was stopped by Milton Bradley. Between 1950 and 1951, during the sales process, the archive's collections (books, drawings, correspondence, printing forms, paper dolls, wooden dolls, puzzles, games) were shared between the members of the Executive Board of the McLoughlin department.

Julius Kushner

In December 1951, the McLoughlin Bros. trademark was sold to New York toy maker Julius Kushner and some successful toys such as the Jolly Jump-Ups were re-launched.

Grosset & Dunlap

In June 1954, McLoughlin's children's books were sold to Grosset & Dunlap . Books continued to be printed under the name of McLoughlin, but from the 1970s it was no longer used.

archive

Part of the archive was taken over by Vice President Charles Ernest Miller (* 1869; † 1951) in 1950/51 . After his death on March 4, 1951, Ruth Miller received the collection, which she sold to the collector Herbert H. Hosmer in 1968. In 1978 he gave away the collection of the American Antiquarian Society .

Another part is now in the de Grummond Children's Literature Collection at the University of Southern Mississippi .

Web links

Commons : McLoughlin Brothers publications  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files