Frank Nelson Doubleday facts for kids
Frank Nelson Doubleday (born January 8, 1862 – died January 30, 1934) was a famous American publisher. He started the Doubleday & McClure Company in 1897, which became one of the biggest publishing houses in the world. His friends and family called him "Effendi," a nickname given by the famous writer Rudyard Kipling. Frank Doubleday began working at a young age, and his family continued his publishing legacy for many years.
His son, Nelson Doubleday, and grandson, Nelson Doubleday, Jr., later led the company. In 1986, his grandson sold the Doubleday Company to a German company called Bertelsmann.
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Early Life
Frank Nelson Doubleday was born in Brooklyn on January 8, 1862. His father was a hatter. Frank became very interested in printing when he was young. By age 10, he had saved enough money to buy his own printing press. He earned money by printing ads and news for local businesses.
When Frank was 14, his father's business failed. Frank had to leave school and find a full-time job.
Building a Publishing Empire
Frank started working at Charles Scribner's Sons in Manhattan in 1877. He earned $3 a week. Doubleday worked there for 18 years. He eventually became the publisher of Scribner's Magazine. He also led Scribner's department for selling books by subscription.
Starting His Own Company
Frank Doubleday left Scribner's and partnered with Samuel S. McClure. McClure was the publisher of McClure's Magazine. They formed the Doubleday & McClure Co. in March 1897.
The next year, they almost took over Harper & Brothers. But Frank Doubleday found that Harper's finances were in trouble. He convinced McClure to stop the deal.
New Partnerships
In 1899, Doubleday and McClure decided to end their partnership. The next year, Doubleday invited Walter Hines Page to join him. Page was a former editor of The Atlantic Monthly. Their new company was called Doubleday, Page & Co.
In 1921, Doubleday bought a big part of the English publisher William Heinemann. This happened after Heinemann died without an heir. In 1927, Doubleday bought another publishing house, George H. Doran. His company then became Doubleday, Doran & Co.
Frank Doubleday loved England. He spent many work trips there looking for new authors and publishers. He was friends with famous people like James Barrie, Andrew Carnegie, Rudyard Kipling, and Mark Twain. Kipling gave him the nickname "Effendi" from his initials F.N.D.
Family Life
Doubleday married Neltje De Graff on June 9, 1886. Neltje wrote several books about gardens and birds. They adopted a boy named Felix. Then they had a son, Nelson, and a daughter, Dorothy.
Their son, Nelson Doubleday, followed his father into the publishing business. He served as president of the company for many years. His own son, Nelson Doubleday, Jr., later took over in 1978.
Neltje died in 1918 while working for the Red Cross. Later that year, Frank Doubleday married Florence Van Wyck.
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