John Keese (24 November 1805 in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

– 30 May 1856 in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

) was a United States

auctioneer An auction is usually a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bids, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder or buying the item from the lowest bidder. Some exceptions to this definition exi ...

, publisher and editor of books. John Keese

Biography

He received an academical education, and at the age of eighteen entered as clerk with a book publishing house in New York City. Several years afterward he became partner in the concern, and from 1842 until 1853 he was engaged in the book-auction business. In 1854 Keese received the appointment of appraiser of books in the New York Custom House, which office he filled until his death. While in office, he devoted many evenings to his former vocation of book auctioneer. During his career, Keese became widely known among literary men and booksellers as a humorous off-hand speaker, editor, and wit. He was the author of many verses that appeared anonymously in the periodicals of his time. In 1852 he delivered a lecture on “The Influence of Knowledge” at the Broadway Tabernacle in New York City. After the formation of the auction firm of Cooley, Keese and Hill he began his opening address at the book-trade sales, saying: “Gentlemen: You have a right to know something about our methods and plans of business. First, we shall on all occasions take everything Cooley. As for the security of your goods, they will always be under the protection of excellent locks and Keese; and you may rely on our stability, for we rest upon one of the granite Hills of

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the nor ...

.” At another time he offered a collection of poems by some unknown author, remarking: “This is a book by a poor and pious girl, who wrote poor and pious poetry.” Again a parcel of books was knocked down to one Owen Phalen, with the remark: “Don't know about selling to a man who is always Owen and Phalen.”

Family life

In the Spring of 1843, John Keese's son, Willetts died in a drowning accident.Boston Public Library. Rare Books and Manuscripts Department. Rufus Griswold Collection, 1830-1897. Letter from Charles F. Hoffman to R. W. Griswold dated 24 April 1843.

Works

Mr. Keese edited: *''The Poets of America'' (2 vols., New York, 1839-1840) *''The Poetical Remains of Lucy Hooper'' (1842) *''Poems by

Elizabeth Oakes Smith Elizabeth Oakes Smith ( Prince; August 12, 1806 – November 16, 1893) was a poet, fiction writer, editor, lecturer, and women's rights activist whose career spanned six decades, from the 1830s to the 1880s. Most well-known at the start of her ...

'' (1843) *''The Mourner's Chaplet'' (Boston, 1844) *''The Winter-Green'', an annual (1844) *'' The Opal'', an annual (2 vols., 1846-1847) *''The Forest Legendary'' (1848) *''The Floral Keepsake'' (1850) He also furnished a large part of the text for ''North American Scenery'' by Whitefield (1845).

Notes

References

* This work in turn cites: **William Linn Keese, ''John Keese — Wit and Litterateur'', (New York, 1884). {{DEFAULTSORT:Keese, John 1805 births 1856 deaths American humorists American editors American auctioneers 19th-century American businesspeople