Publications of Richard Grafton

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 Richard Grafton

  • [The primer, set foorth by the Kynges Maiestie and his clergie, to be taught lerned, & read: and none other to be vsed throughout all his dominions]. [Imprinted at London: VVithin the precinct of the late dissolued house of the gray Friers, by Richard Grafton printer to the Princes grace,, the .xxix. daye of Maye, the yere of our Lord M.D.XLV] [1545]. ESTC No. S110241. Grub Street ID 130341.

Printed for Richard Grafton

  • The Byble, which is all the holy Scripture: in whych are contayned the Olde and Newe Testament truly and purely translated into Englysh by Thomas Matthew. M,D,XXXVII, Set forth with the Kinges most gracyous lyce[n]ce. [Antwerp: Printed by Matthew Crom for Richard Grafton and Edward Whitchurch, London, 1537]. ESTC No. S121981. Grub Street ID 141540.

Author

  • Grafton, Richard. An abridgement of the chronicles of England, gathered by Richard Grafton, citizen of London. Anno Do. 1563. Perused and allowed, according to an order taken. [London]: In ædibus Richardi Tottyll. Cum priuilegio, [1562]. ESTC No. S119746. Grub Street ID 139386.
  • Grafton, Richard. A manuell of the Chronicles of Englande. From the creacion of the worlde, to this yere of our Lorde 156[5]. Abridged and corrected by Richard Grafton. Imprinted at London: By Ihon Kingston, [1565]. ESTC No. S117712. Grub Street ID 137380.
  • Grafton, Richard. A chronicle at large and meere history of the affayres of Englande and kinges of the same, deduced from the Creation of the vvorlde, vnto the first habitation of thys islande: and so by contynuance vnto the first yere of the reigne of our most deere and souereigne Lady Queene Elizabeth: collected out of sundry aucthors, whose names are expressed in the next page of this leafe. Anno Domini. 1569. Cum priuilegio. [Imprinted at London: by Henry Denham, dwelling in Paternoster Rowe, for Richarde Tottle and Humffrey Toye, Anno. 1569. the last of March]. ESTC No. S121210. Grub Street ID 140805.
  • Grafton, Richard. Graftons abridgement of the chronicles of Englande. Newly and diligently corrected, and finished the last of October. 1570. The contentes whereof apeareth in the next page of this lefe. Seene and allowed, according to an order taken. [London]: In ædibus Richardi Tottyll. Cum priuilegio, [1570]. ESTC No. S122606. Grub Street ID 142138.
  • Grafton, Richard. A litle treatise, conteyning many proper tables and rules, very necessary for the vse of al men, the contentes wherof appere in the next page folowing. Collected and set forthe by Richard Grafton. 1571. Londini: In ædibus Richardi Tottelli. Cum priuilegio ad imprimendum solum, [1571]. ESTC No. S115669. Grub Street ID 135359.
  • Grafton, Richard. A litle treatise, conteyning many proper tables and rules, very necessary for the use of all men. The contents whereof appere in the next page folowing. Collected by Rychard Grafton. 1572. [Londini: In ædibus Richardi Tottelli. Cum priuilegio], 1572. ESTC No. S113568. Grub Street ID 133298.
  • Grafton, Richard. A brief treatise conteinyng many proper tables and easie rules, verie necessary and needefull, for the vse and commoditie of all people, collected out of certaine learned mens woorkes. The contentes wherof, the page that follovveth doeth expresse. Newly set forthe and allowed, accordyng to the Queenes Maiesties iniunctions. Imprinted at London: By [H. Middleton for] Ihon VValey, [1573?]. ESTC No. S114033. Grub Street ID 133756.
  • Grafton, Richard. A brief treatise conteinyng many proper tables and easie rules, very necessarie and needefull, for the vse and commoditie of all people, collected out of certaine learned mens workes. The contentes whereof, the page that followeth doeth expresse. Imprinted at London: By [J. Charlewood for] Ihon VValey, 1579. ESTC No. S114034. Grub Street ID 133757.
  • Grafton, Richard. A briefe treatise conteyning many proper tables and easie rules, verye necessarye and needefull, for the vse and commoditie of all people, collected out of certaine learned mens workes. The contentes whereof, the page that followeth doth expresse. Imprinted at London: By [J. Charlewood for] Iohn Walley, 1582. ESTC No. S115655. Grub Street ID 135345.
  • Grafton, Richard. A briefe treatise conteyning manie proper tables and easie rules, verye necessary and needefull, for the vse and commoditie of all people, collected out of certaine learned mens workes. The contentes whereof, the page that follovveth dooth expresse. [London]: Imprinted at London by Iohn Walley, 1585. ESTC No. S92738. Grub Street ID 151417.
  • Grafton, Richard. A briefe treatise contayning manie proper tables and easie rules: very necessarie and needefull, for the vse and commoditie of all people, collected out [of] certaine learned mens workes. Perused, corrected, and augmented by W.W. The contents whereof, the leafe that followeth doth expresse. Newely set forth and allowed according to the Queenes maiesties iniunctions. 1568. At London: printed by I. C[harlewood]. for Robert Walley, [1588]. ESTC No. S91157. Grub Street ID 150343.
  • Grafton, Richard. A briefe treatise contayning many proper tables and easie rules: Verie necessarie and needefull, for the vse and commoditie of all people, collected out of certaine learned mens workes. Perused, corrected, and augmented by W.W. The contents whereof, the leafe that followeth doth expresse. At London: Printed by Iohn Charlwood, for Thomas Adams, 1591. ESTC No. S118228. Grub Street ID 137890.
  • Grafton, Richard. A briefe treatise, contayning many proper tables and easie rules. Very necessarie and needfull, for the vse & commoditie of all people, collected out of certaine learned mens works. Perused, corrected, and augmented by W.W. The contents whereof, the leafe that next followeth dooth expresse. At London: Printed by the widovve Charlewood, for Thomas Adams, Anno. 1593. ESTC No. S116002. Grub Street ID 135695.
  • Grafton, Richard. A briefe treatise containing many proper tables and easie rules. Very necessary and needeful, for the vse and commoditie of all people, collected out of certaine learned mens works. Perused, corrected, and augmented by W.W. The contentes whereof, the leafe that next followeth doeth expresse. At London: Printed by V. S[immes] for Thomas Adams dwelling in Pauls Churchyard at the signe of the white Lion, 1595. ESTC No. S119652. Grub Street ID 139292.
  • Grafton, Richard. A briefe treatise containing many proper tables and easie rules. Very necessary and needeful, for the vse and commoditie of all people, collected out of certaine learned mens workes. Perused, corrected, and augmented by W.W. The contents whereof, the leafe that next followeth doth expresse. London: Printed by Valentine Simmes for Thomas Adams, dwelling in Paules churchyard at the signe of the White Lion, 1596. ESTC No. S116678. Grub Street ID 136366.
  • Grafton, Richard. A briefe treatise containing many proper tables and easie rules. Very necessary and needful, for the vse and commoditie of all people: first collected out of certaine learned mens workes. By Richard Grafton. And now perused, corrected, and in many places augmented this present yeare 1602. The contents whereof, the leafe that next followeth doth expresse. London: Printed [by R. Read] for Thomas Adams, dwelling in Paules Church-yard at the signe of the white Lion, 1602. ESTC No. S116003. Grub Street ID 135696.
  • Grafton, Richard. A briefe treatise containing many proper tables and easie rules. Very necessary and needful for the vse and commodity of all people: first collected out o[f] certaine learned mens wo[r]kes. By Richard Grafton. And now newly perused, corrected, and in many places augmente this present yeare. 1608. The contents whereof, the leafe that next followeth doth expresse. London: printed [by G. Eld] for Thomas Adams, dwelling in Paules Church-yard at the signe of the white Lion, 1608. ESTC No. S124534. Grub Street ID 143886.
  • Grafton, Richard. Vain boastings of Frenchmen. The same in 1386 as in 1798. Being an account of the threatened invasion of England by the French the 10th year of King Richard II. Extracted from ancient chronicles. London: printed for J. Pridden, No 100, Fleet-Street; C. Dilly; F. and C. Rivington; T. Egerton; G. Leigh and J. Sotheby; R. Faulder; and R. Bickerstaff, [1798]. ESTC No. T131630. Grub Street ID 180602.