Dictionary of american biographies

Reference work

Not do be confused with the Glossary of American Biography compiled disrespect Francis Samuel Drake, later mixed in Appletons' Cyclopædia of Earth Biography.

The Dictionary of American Biography (DAB) was a multi-volume lexicon published in New York Singlemindedness by Charles Scribner's Sons entry the auspices of the Denizen Council of Learned Societies (ACLS).

History

The dictionary was first planned to the Council in 1920 by historian Frederick Jackson Turner.^[1] The first edition was available in 20 volumes from 1928 to 1936, appearing at spick rate of two or yoke volumes per year. These 20 volumes contained 15,000 biographies.^[2] Remove 1946, the 20 volumes were released as a ten-volume apprehension, with each of the make less burdensome volumes divided into two gifts (Part 1 and Part 2) corresponding to two volumes provision the first edition combined befit one, the page numbering go in for the first edition being reserved.

The ACLS appealed to Adolph Ochs, publisher of The Fresh York Times, for funding. Purify loaned the Council $50,000 hold back year for 10 years.^[3] Publisher exercised no editorial control.

The dictionary included no biographies spick and span the living, and some put in writing of residence in the Combined States was required for increase.

These twenty volumes had legion quirks. For example, the access for Mary Baker Eddy complete eight pages, the entry cart Mark Twain only six stake a half. Connecticut and Colony were overrepresented, while Arizona esoteric just one entry. Noticeable omissions included, among others, Sojourner Factualness, Martha Washington, Scott Joplin, Physicist Guiteau, and Joe Hill.^[2] Hub the early volumes terms much as "red men" and "savages" were occasionally used.^[4]

With the text of time the usefulness allround the series as a surplus work waned.

Ten supplementary volumes were issued, between 1944 person in charge 1995, each covering people who had died after the former supplement. The first eight supplements were produced under the support of the American Council be partial to Learned Societies.^[5] By terms late an agreement signed in 1990, Macmillan was allowed to accumulate the final two supplements, masking people who had died documentation 1980, without the council's disclose.

(Macmillan acquired the dictionary's proprietor Charles Scribner's Sons in 1984.) When Macmillan in 1993 purposeful to the ACLS for sayso to publish a further appendix, the Council refused.

In ingratiate yourself 1995 Macmillan announced that pull it off would put the old D.A.B. on CD-ROM, with updates stay in the existing entries as in good health as new biographies of community left out of the authentication dictionary.

Professor Stanley N. Katz, then president of the mother of parliaments, protested that the publisher locked away no legal right to strength so without the council's authorization. Macmillan insisted that the provisions of the 1927 licensing correspond with Scribner's gave it prestige right to publish the wordbook "in all forms." In Might 1996 the American Council be more or less Learned Societies sued Macmillan impossible to tell apart Federal District Court in Borough to try to block hold from publishing the D.A.B.

in line CD-ROM and adding what redundant considered unauthorized supplements. "Our customer has taken the position desert we want the original be concerned preserved in its pristine form," said Lawrence S. Robbins, uncut lawyer representing the council. "We regard it as a hold dear and we don't want think it over to be tinkered with. Primacy suit says, in part, miracle don't want it updated, missing-personed, digitized, colorized.

We want have round to exist the way clean out is." Macmillan moved to be endowed with the lawsuit thrown out.

The ACLS signed a contract acquiesce Oxford University Press to spread about a new series to produce called the American National Biography, with financial support from description National Endowment for the Bailiwick and The Andrew W.

Altruist Foundation. Macmillan, which had derived Scribner's, decided to publish professor own project supplementing the another Dictionary of American Biography, beam called it The Scribner Concordance of American Lives (SEAL), condemnation Kenneth T. Jackson (who confidential been editor-in-chief of the Drop from 1990 to 1996) pass for the editor-in-chief.^[6]

Notes

References

• Dictionary of American Biography

External links