Publications of James Watson

Note: The following printer, bookseller, or publisher lists are works in progress. They are generated from title page imprints and may reproduce false and misleading attributions or contain errors.

What does "printed by" mean? How to read the roles ascribed to people in the imprints.

In terms of the book trades, the lists below are sorted into up to four groups where: the person is designated in the imprint as having a single role:

  1. "printed by x"; or
  2. "sold by x"; or
  3. "printed for x" or "published by x"; or

as having multiple roles in combination (which suggests a likelihood that the person is a trade publisher):

  1. "printed and sold by x"; "printed for and sold by x"; or "printed by and for x" and so on.

Printers (owners of the type and printing presses, and possibly owners of the copyright) may be identified by the words printed by, but printed by does not universally designate a person who is a printer by trade. Booksellers may be identified by the words sold by, but sold by encompasses a number of roles. Booksellers or individuals who owned the copyright are generally identified by the words printed for, but nothing should be concluded in this regard without further evidence, especially since "printed for" could signify that the named person was a distributor rather than a copyright holder. Trade publishers, who distributed books and pamphlets but did not own the copyright or employ a printer—and were not printers themselves—might be identified by the words printed and sold by. Furthermore, works from this period often display false imprints, whether to evade copyright restrictions, to conceal the name of the copyright holders, or to dupe unwitting customers. Ultimately, one must proceed with caution in using the following lists: designations in the imprints may not reliably reflect the actual trades or roles of the people named, and the formulas used in imprints do not consistently mean the same thing.

David Foxon discussed the "meaning of the imprint" in his Lyell Lecture delivered at Oxford in March 1976, with particular attention to "publishers" in the eighteenth-century context:

The fullest form of an imprint is one which names three people, or groups of people:
     London: printed by X (the printer), for Y (the bookseller who owned the copyright), and sold by Z.
In the eighteenth century the printer's name is rarely given, at least in works printed in London, and the form is more commonly:
     London: printed for Y, and sold by Z.
Very often in this period, and particularly for pamphlets, it is further abbreviated to:
     London: printed and sold by Z.
It is this last form which is my present concern. Z is usually what the eighteenth century called 'a publisher', or one who distributes books and pamphlets without having any other responsibility—he does not own the copyright or employ a printer, or even know the author.

D. F. McKenzie coined the term "trade publisher" for these publishers in his Sandars Lectures, also in 1976, on the grounds that their principal role was to publish on behalf of other members of the book trade (Treadwell 100).

Michael Treadwell cautions that "In this period the imprint 'London: Printed and sold by A.B.' normally means 'Printed at London, and sold by A.B.' and must not be taken to mean that A.B. is a printer in the absence of other evidence." Further, "The imprint 'published by' occurs only rarely in Wing and is almost always associated with the name of a trade publisher" (104). While there are exceptions to the rule, it is "certain," he explains, "that anyone who made a speciality of distributing works for others will show a far higher proportion than normal of imprints in one of the 'sold by' forms" (116), which appear in the imprint as "sold by," "printed and sold by," or "published by" (104). Treadwell gives Walter Kettilby as an example of "a fairly typical copyright-owning bookseller" (106)—his role is almost always designated by the phrase "printed for" on imprints.

A final caution: publisher is a word that should be used with some deliberation. Samuel Johnson defines it simply as "One who puts out a book into the world," but "published by" rarely appears on the imprint until later in the eighteenth century, and then primarily associated with newspapers and pamphlets. Treadwell observes that John Dunton names only five publishers among the 200 binders and booksellers in his autobiographical Life and Errors (1705) wherein he undertakes "to draw the Character of the most Eminent [Stationers] in the Three Kingdoms" (100). Treadwell also remarks, however, that "in law, anyone who offered a work for sale 'published' it. In this sense every work had one or more 'publishers', and every bookseller, mercury, and hawker was a 'publisher'" (114).

See:

  • Terry Belanger, "From Bookseller to Publisher: Changes in the London Book Trade, 1750–1850," in Book Selling and Book Buying. Aspects of the Nineteenth-Century British and North American Book Trade, ed. Richard G. Landon (Chicago: American Library Association, 1978).
  • Bricker, Andrew Benjamin. "Who was 'A. Moore'? The Attribution of Eighteenth-Century Publications with False and Misleading Imprints," in The Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America 110.2 (2016).
  • John Dunton, The Life and Errors of John Dunton (London: Printed for S. Malthus, 1705).
  • John Feather, "The Commerce of Letters: The Study of the Eighteenth-Century Book Trade," Eighteenth-Century Studies 17 (1984).
  • David Foxon, Pope and the Early Eighteenth-Century Book Trade, ed. James McLaverty (Oxford University Press, 1991).
  • Samuel Johnson, Dictionary of the English Language, (printed for J. and P. Knapton; T. and T. Longman; C. Hitch and L. Hawes; A. Millar; and R. and J. Dodsley, 1755).
  • D.F. McKenzie, The London Book Trade in the Later Seventeenth Century (Sandars lectures in bibliography, 1977).
  • Michael Treadwell, "London Trade Publishers 1675–1750," The Library sixth series, vol. 4, no. 2 (1982).

Printed by James Watson

  • Gay, John. Polly: an opera. Being the second part of The beggar's opera. Written by Mr. Gay. London: printed [by James Watson and Samuel Aris] for T. Thomson, and sold by the booksellers of London and Westminster, 1729. ESTC No. T13801. Grub Street ID 185888.
  • The choice: being a collection Of Two Hundred and Fifty Celebrated Songs. London: printed by J. Watson, over-against Hungerford-Market in the Strand, and sold by R. King at the Prince's Arms, and T. Astley at the Rose, in St. Paul's Church-Yard; and by R. Willock [at] Sir Isaac Newton's Head in Cornhill, 1729. ESTC No. T59140. Grub Street ID 285162.
  • Ramsay, Allan. The tea-table miscellany: or, Allan Ramsay's collection of Scots sangs [sic]. London: printed by J. Watson, 1730. ESTC No. N13433. Grub Street ID 3352.
  • Manley, Delariviere. Secret memoirs and manners of several persons of quality of both sexes. From the new Atlantis, an island in the Mediterranean. In four volumes. Written originally in Italian. ... London: printed by J. Watson; sold by A. Dodd, 1736. ESTC No. T72173. Grub Street ID 295728.
  • The court kalendar. 1740. ... London: printed and sold by Ja. Watson,, 1740. ESTC No. T34323. Grub Street ID 264643.

Sold by James Watson

  • Haywood, Eliza. The agreeable Caledonian: or, memoirs of Signiora di Morella, a Roman lady, who made her escape from a monastery at Viterbo, for the love of a Scots nobleman. Intermix'd with many other entertaining little histories and Adventures which presented themselves to her in the Course of her Travels. London: printed for Richard King, at the Prince's-Arms in St. Paul's Churchyard: and sold by W. Meadows, at the Angel in Cornhill; T. Green, near Charing-Cross; John Stone, against Bedford-Row, near Grays-Inn; J. Jackson, in Pallmall, next St. James's; and J. Watson, over-against Hungerford-Market, in the Strand, MDCCXXVIII. [1728]. ESTC No. N2180. Grub Street ID 11155.
  • The second part of Great-Britain's memorial. Containing a collection of the instructions, representations, &c. &c. of the freeholders and other electors of Great-Britain, to their representatives in Parliament, ... which, together with those publish'd in Part I. ... in June 1740, compleats the whole down to June 1742. London: printed and sold by J. Watson, 1742. ESTC No. N22247. Grub Street ID 11614.

Printed for James Watson

  • Haywood, Eliza. The agreeable Caledonian: or, memoirs of Signiora di Morella, a Roman lady. Who made her escape from a monastery at Viterbo, for the love of a Scots nobleman. Intermix'd with many other entertaining histories ... Part II. London: Printed for R. King, at the Prince’s-Arms in St. Paul’s Church-Yard; and sold by G. Strahan and W. Meadows, in Cornhill; T. Green, near Charing-Cross; J. Stone, near Gray’s-Inn; J. Jackson, in Pallmall; and J. Watson, over-against Hungerford-Market, in the Strand, M.DCC.XXIX. [1729]. ESTC No. N29532. Grub Street ID 18660.
  • Annesley, James. The trial at large, between James Annesley, Esq; plaintiff, and the Right Honourable Ricard Earl of Anglesey, defendant. Before the Honourable the Barons of the Exchequer, in Ireland: begun on Friday, November 11, 1743, ... London: re-printed from the original copy printed at Dublin, for J. Watson, 1744. ESTC No. N13752. Grub Street ID 3651.
  • Marlborough, Sarah Churchill. A true copy of the last will and testament of Her Grace Sarah, late Duchess Dowager of Marlborough: with the codicil thereto annexed. London: printed for J. Watson in Fleet-Street, 1744. ESTC No. N14107. Grub Street ID 4006.

Printed by and for, or by/for and sold by James Watson

  • Le Tellier, médecin de Peronne. Critical reflections upon the emmenology of Dr. Freind. By Dr. Le Tellier, a French Physician. Translated from the French. London: printed and sold by J. Watson, over-against Hungerford-Market in the Strand, and by the Booksellers of London and Westminster, [1731]. ESTC No. T149712. Grub Street ID 195665.
  • Conjugal duty: set forth in a collection of ingenious and delightful wedding-sermons. Viz. I. The Merchant-Royal: Or, Woman a Ship. By Robert Wilkinson. II. The Bridal-Bush. By H. Cornwallis. III. A Wedding-Ring fit for the Finger. By William Secker. IV. A New-Year's-Gift. By J. Colby. V. The Character of a chaste and vertuous Woman. By M. Moxon. VI. The Bride-Woman's Counsellour. By J. Sprint. Vii. A Wife Mistaken: Or, Leah instead of Rachel. By T. Grantham. Viii. The Virgin Mary. By T. Master. London: printed and sold by J. Watson, over-against Hunger-Ford-Market in the Strand, MDCCXXXII. [1732]. ESTC No. T73484. Grub Street ID 296739.
  • The case of bankrupts and insolvents consider'd. Wherein it is shewn, I. That the Most Criminal of all Insolvents do not, by the Laws now in Being, meet with any Punishment. II. That their Creditors have no Proper Relief. III. That all other Insolvents are too severely Punished. IV. That the truly Unfortunate are most Inhumanly dealt with. And, V. That the present Method of treating Insolvents in general is inconsistent with the Laws of Nature, and the Maxims of True Polity. Together with the Draught of a Bill for Amending the Law in every one of these Particulars: I. By Distinguishing Insolvents into their Proper and Natural Classes. II. By allotting a Proportional Punishment to each. III. By granting Mercy in a proper Way to the truly Unfortunate. And, IV. By giving Relief to the Creditors of fraudulent Insolvents. Part I. London: printed and sold by J. Watson in Wardrobe Court, Great Carter Lane, near Doctors Commons; and A. Dodd without Temple-Bar, [1734]. ESTC No. N15340. Grub Street ID 5071.
  • An exact list of the lords spiritual and temporal. With an alphabetical list I. Of the counties, cities, and boroughs, with their representatives, ... II. Of the knights, citizens and burgesses of the present Parliament, ... London: printed and sold by Ja. Watson, F. Jefferies, J. Brotherton and H. Whitteridge; and J. Hodges, 1735. ESTC No. N28182. Grub Street ID 17413.
  • The case of bankrupts and insolvents consider'd. ... Part II. London: printed and sold by J. Watson; and A. Dodd, 1735. ESTC No. N15341. Grub Street ID 5072.
  • An exact list of the lords spiritual and temporal. With an alphabetical list I. Of the counties, cities, and boroughs, with their representatives, P. 18. II. Of the knights, citizens and burgesses of the present Parliament, with their Places of Abode, &c. P. 31. And other Proper Distinctions. To which is added, a list of the peers of Scotland and Ireland. London: printed and sold by Ja. Watson in Wardrobe-Court, Great Carter-Lane, Fr. Jefferies in Ludgatestreet, and by the pamphlet-shops of London and Westminster, MDCCXXXVII. [1737]. ESTC No. T182649. Grub Street ID 219091.
  • The court kalendar compleat, for the year 1744. London: printed and sold by James Watson, in Wardrobe-Court, Great Carter-Lane, MDCCXLIV. [1744]. ESTC No. T34328. Grub Street ID 264648.