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Sampson Low is far from a household word among students of the Victorian book trade. Yet, in his quiet and unassuming way he may have done more than almost any other publisher to shape the course of publishing and bookselling.

In 1837, with the support of leading London publishers, he issued the Publishers’ Circular in direct competition with Bent’s Literary Monthly which it gradually replaced. Whereas Bent’s came out monthly, Low’s appeared every other week and was more comprehensive. The Circular eventually became essential to publishers throughout the United Kingdom for announcing new publications and significant revisions.

In 1849 Low issued the first of his major compilations of new books titled the British Catalogue; a fuller version, the English Catalogue appeared in 1863. These two volumes have became indispensable tools for bibliographers and trade historians. Later editions followed, and Low also did a retrospective volume covering the years 1801-1836.

Sampson Low was also the leading agent in London for the publication and distribution of American books. He issued the first comprehensive catalogue of American books available for sale in Britain, and acted as the London representative for major American publishers like Harpers and Scribners, and facilitated the republication of British books in America.

In 1852, when the London publishers sought to prevent price-cutting of retail books by booksellers, they chose Low as Secretary of their ad hoc committee, indicating the trust and respect his colleagues had for him.

Edward Marston became Low’s partner and carried on the business after Low died in 1886. Among the firm’s distinguished authors were Anthony Trollope, R.D. Blackmore, Louisa May Alcott, Bulwer Lytton, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Wilkie Collins, Elizabeth Gaskell, Victor Hugo and Jules Vern.

It is not too strong to credit Sampson Low with transforming the Victorian book trade by greatly facilitating the publishing, advertising, marketing and sale of new books on both sides of the Atlantic.

Stream: Books, Writing and Reading

Paper: A paper has not yet been submitted.

A graduate of Amherst College in 1954, Barnes then spent two years as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford. He received his PhD. in History from Harvard University in 1960, and has taught at Wabash College continuously since 1962. He has been the recipient of many fellowships, including the Fulbright, Social Science Research Council, Woodrow Wilson Foundation, and American Council of Learned Societies. He holds two honorary degrees from The College of Wooster and Amherst College. His publications have included: "Free Trade in Books: A Study of the London Book Trade since 1800" (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1964); "Authors, Publishers, and Politicians: The Quest for an Anglo-American Copyright Agreement" (London: Routledge, 1974); and "Hitler's Mein Kampf in Britian and America: A Publishing History" (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1980).