Joseph William Moss facts for kids
Joseph William Moss (born 1803, died 1862) was an English doctor. He is best known for writing a special book called Manual of Classical Bibliography. This book was a guide to old and important books.
About His Life
Joseph Moss was born in a town called Dudley. This town was in Worcestershire, England, at the time. He went to Magdalen Hall, Oxford University on March 21, 1820. While he was a student, he spent a lot of time studying old books and their lists. He earned his first university degree in 1825. Then he got more degrees in 1827 and 1829. After finishing his studies, he started working as a doctor in Dudley.
On February 18, 1830, Joseph Moss was chosen to be a Fellow of the Royal Society. This is a special honor for people who have done important work in science. In 1847, he moved from Dudley to Longdon, which is near Lichfield. A year later, in 1848, he moved again to the Manor House in Upton Bishop, Herefordshire. He moved one more time in 1853 to Hill Grove House in Wells, Somerset. He passed away there on May 23, 1862. By the end of his life, people thought of him as a very private person who kept to himself.
His Main Book
Joseph Moss's most famous book was the Manual of Classical Bibliography. He said he sent the book to be printed in early 1823. The book was published in 1825. It came in two large parts and had over 1250 pages. When the book was advertised, it was compared to other important book guides. People said it was even better than some older ones. Even though the Manual had some missing parts and mistakes, it became a very important reference book. Many people used it to find information about old books. Some reviews of the book were positive. However, a newspaper called the Literary Gazette wrote three articles in 1825 that strongly criticized it. Joseph Moss wrote a reply in the Gentleman's Magazine in September 1825. He admitted that he had used the idea for his book from another writer named Thomas Frognall Dibdin. The Literary Magazine then wrote another article in response.
The Manual was printed again in 1837 by Henry George Bohn. This new version had a different title page, but it did not fix any of the old mistakes. The publisher also added a Supplement to the book. This part listed books up to 1836, but it wasn't always consistent with the main book.
