Thomas Fisher Unwin (24 January 1848 – 6 February 1935) was an English publisher who founded the publishing house of T. Fisher Unwin.

Early life and career

Thomas Fisher Unwin was born on 24 January 1848 in 33 Lowgate Hill, London. He was the son of the printer Jacob Unwin (1802–1855), who was the founder of the firm Unwin Brothers and of the Gresham Press, and of his wife, Isobel, (née Hall). He attended the City of London School and then worked for the London publishing firm, Jackson, Walford, and Hodder (which was the predecessor firm of

Hodder & Stoughton Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint of Hachette.H ...

). In 1882, he founded his own publishing firm, T. Fisher Unwin. In 1885, he started a British book series titled ''The Story of the Nations''. It reflected his views, which were liberal and internationalist; and also his wife's interest in

abolitionism Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the political movement to end slavery and liberate enslaved individuals around the world. The first country to fully outlaw slavery was France in 1315, but it was later used in its colonies. ...

and

suffragism Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to vo ...

. The series was published in the USA by G. P. Putnam, though not in identical form. He was a co-founder of the Johnson Club, formed 13 September 1884, to mark the hundred years since the death of Dr Samuel Johnson. In 1896, he jointly founded

The Publishers Association The Publishers Association (PA) is the trade organisation serving book, journal and electronic publishers in the United Kingdom, established in 1896. Its mission is "to strengthen the trading environment for UK publishers, by providing a strong v ...

Personal life

He was married to

Jane Cobden Emma Jane Catherine Cobden (28 April 1851 – 7 July 1947) was a British Liberal politician who was active in many radical causes. A daughter of the Victorian reformer and statesman Richard Cobden, she was an early proponent of women's r ...

, the

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

politician, daughter of the Victorian reformer and statesman

Richard Cobden Richard Cobden (3 June 1804 – 2 April 1865) was an English Radicals (UK), Radical and Liberal Party (UK), Liberal politician, manufacturing, manufacturer, and a campaigner for free trade and peace. He was associated with the Anti–Corn Law L ...

. His nephew, Stanley Unwin, founded the publishing firm

George Allen and Unwin George Allen & Unwin was a British publishing company formed in 1911 when Sir Stanley Unwin purchased a controlling interest in George Allen & Co. It became one of the leading publishers of the twentieth century and established an Australian ...

. He died at his home in

Midhurst Midhurst () is a market town and civil parish in the Chichester District in West Sussex, England. It lies on the River Rother (Western), River Rother, inland from the English Channel and north of Chichester. The name Midhurst was first reco ...

, Sussex on 6 February 1935.

Works

Some editions of T. Fisher Unwin: * '' The Story of the Nations'' (1885–1905, 1st ed.; 1911, 2nd ed.), 65 Volumes. * ''The Story of a Puppet'' or ''

The Adventures of Pinocchio ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' ( ; , i.e. "The Adventures of Pinocchio. Story of a Puppet"), commonly shortened to ''Pinocchio'', is an 1883 Children's literature, children's fantasy novel by Italian author Carlo Collodi. It is about the mischi ...

'' (1892), by

Carlo Collodi Carlo Lorenzini (; 24 November 1826 – 26 October 1890), better known by the pen name Carlo Collodi ( ; ), was an Italian author, humourist, and journalist, widely known for his fairy tale novel '' The Adventures of Pinocchio''. Early lif ...

. * ''The English Peasant'' (1893), by

Richard Heath Richard Heath (born August 9, 1955) is an American politician who served as a Republican member of the Kentucky House of Representatives from 2012 to 2025. He represented Kentucky's 2nd House district, which included Graves County and part o ...

. * ''The Tales of John Oliver Hobbes'' (1894), by

John Oliver Hobbes Pearl Mary Teresa Richards (November 3, 1867 – August 13, 1906) was an Anglo-American novelist and dramatist who wrote under the pen-name of John Oliver Hobbes. Though her work fell out of print in the twentieth century, her first book ''Som ...

. * ''By Reef and Palm'' (1894, 1st ed.; 1916, 7th ed.), by

Louis Becke George Lewis Becke (or Louis Becke; 18 June 1855 – 18 February 1913) was at the turn of the nineteenth century, the most prolific, significant, and internationally renowned Australian-born writer of the South Pacific region. Having lived and ...

. * ''My Climbs in the Alps and Caucasus'' (1895), by

Albert Frederick Mummery Albert Frederick Mummery (10 September 1855, Dover, Kent, England – 24 August 1895, Nanga Parbat), was an English mountaineer and author. Although most notable for his many and varied first ascents put up in the Alps, Mummery, along with ...

. * In the years 1895-1898 Unwin published the first novel by

Joseph Conrad Joseph Conrad (born Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski, ; 3 December 1857 – 3 August 1924) was a Poles in the United Kingdom#19th century, Polish-British novelist and story writer. He is regarded as one of the greatest writers in the Eng ...

, Almayer’s Folly, and his

An Outcast of the Islands ''An Outcast of the Islands'' is the second novel by Joseph Conrad, published in 1896, inspired by Conrad's experience as mate of a steamer, the ''Vidar''. The novel details the undoing of Peter Willems, a disreputable, immoral man who, on ...

and

Tales of Unrest ''Tales of Unrest'' is a collection of five works of short fiction by Polish-British author Joseph Conrad. Four of the five works were previously published as serials in literary journals before appearing in the volume, published in 1898 by T. ...

. * ''

Man and Maid ''Man and Maid'' is a lost 1925 drama film directed by Victor Schertzinger based on a 1922 novel by Elinor Glyn. The film stars Lew Cody, Renée Adorée and Harriet Hammond. Plot Boulevardier Sir Nicholas Thormonde (Lew Cody) is torn between ...

'' (1906), by E. Nesbit. * ''The Slave Girl of Agra'' (1909), by

Romesh Chunder Dutt Romesh Chunder Dutt (; 13 August 1848 – 30 November 1909) was an Indian civil servant, economic history, economic historian, translator of ''Ramayana'' and ''Mahabharata''. He was one of the prominent proponents of Indian economic nationalis ...

. * ''Life of Tolstoy'' (1911), by

Romain Rolland Romain Rolland (; 29 January 1866 – 30 December 1944) was a French dramatist, novelist, essayist, art historian and Mysticism, mystic who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1915 "as a tribute to the lofty idealism of his literary pro ...

. * ''Confiscation in Irish history'' (1917), by William Francis Thomas Butler.

References

External links

T. Fisher (Thomas Fisher) Unwin: An Inventory of His Collection at the Harry Ransom Center
finding aid at The University of Texas at Austin * 1848 births 1935 deaths Publishers (people) from London {{publish-bio-stub

Early life and career

Personal life

Works

References

Further reading

External links