The Children's Encyclopædia facts for kids
The Children's Encyclopædia was a famous set of books that taught kids about many different things. It was created by Arthur Mee and first published in London in 1908. It was like a huge collection of facts, stories, and pictures, all made to help young people learn and explore the world. In the United States, a company called Grolier published it under a different name, The Book of Knowledge. These books were very popular for many years, helping children learn until 1964.
Contents
Exploring the Contents of the Encyclopædia
This amazing collection of knowledge first came out in small parts every two weeks between 1908 and 1910. People could collect these parts and have them bound into books. The very first full sets had eight volumes and were released in 1910.
Each part of the encyclopaedia had many different articles. These articles would slowly build on topics as you read through them. You could use the books like a regular reference library, looking things up in the index found in the last volume. Or, you could read each section from beginning to end, like a story.
The encyclopaedia was first set up with different main sections. Over time, these sections sometimes changed in newer versions. Some parts talked about science topics like geology (the study of Earth's rocks), biology (the study of living things), and astronomy (the study of space). However, the books usually tried to avoid using too many difficult science words.
Here are some of the interesting sections you could find:
- Familiar Things: About everyday items.
- Wonder: Where a "Wise Man" answered kids' questions.
- Nature: All about the natural world.
- The Child's Own Life: About how people grow and live.
- The Earth: Facts about our planet.
- All Countries: Exploring different places around the world.
- Great Lives: Stories about important people.
- Golden Deeds: Tales of brave and good actions.
- Bible Stories: Stories from the Bible.
- Famous Books: About well-known books.
- Stories: Different kinds of tales.
- Poetry: A collection of poems.
- School Lessons: Topics that helped with schoolwork.
- Things To Make and Things To Do: Ideas for activities and crafts.
Arthur Mee, the creator, wrote a special welcome and a goodbye message in the books. He was very interested in the "Book of Wonder" section, where a character called the Wise Man would answer questions sent in by children.
Art and Pictures in the Books
The books were filled with many pictures. Most of the artists were not named, but some famous illustrators contributed. These included Susan Beatrice Pearse, C. E. Brock, Thomas Maybank, George F. Morrell, Dudley Heath, Charles Folkard, H. R. Millar, Alexander Francis Lydon, Arthur A. Dixon, and Arthur Rackham. The encyclopaedia also used real photographs by Frank Hinkins, along with engravings, maps, and other helpful graphics.
How the Encyclopædia Taught Kids
This encyclopaedia was special because it changed how people thought about learning. Its main goal was to make learning fun and interesting for children. The articles were written clearly and simply. They also aimed to help children develop good character and a sense of duty.
The books showed a strong sense of pride in Great Britain and its large empire. They also presented Christianity as the only true religion. Europeans were shown as the most advanced people. Some ideas from Caleb Saleeby about improving humanity, called eugenics, were also hinted at. However, the books generally presented these ideas in a fair and open-minded way. For example, other groups of people, even if described as less advanced, were to be treated with respect. Also, the idea of an empire was only seen as right if it helped the people living in those lands.
At a time when science and religion were often debated, the encyclopaedia supported the idea of evolution. It also said that there was no conflict between religious teachings and Charles Darwin's ideas about how life changes over time.
How the Encyclopædia Reached Many Homes
The Children's Encyclopædia was sold to many people. Schools used it, and it was also used to train teachers. By looking at these books, we can learn a lot about the social values and beliefs of the society that created them.
After the first series finished, it was re-released as a monthly magazine called New Children's Encyclopædia. The name changed a few more times, becoming Children's Encyclopædia Magazine, then Children's Magazine, and finally My Magazine in 1914. Starting in September 1910, the magazine included a small news section called The Little Paper. This was the start of Arthur Mee's The Children's Newspaper, which began in 1919.
Different Versions and Editions
The Children's Encyclopædia sold 800,000 copies across 12 different versions before it was greatly updated in the early 1920s. The new series had 59 parts, 7,412 pages, and 10 volumes. It came out in October 1922 and was called The Children's Encyclopedia, with the spelling changed. This new version had 14 editions by 1946. It was also translated into other languages and sold in France, Italy, Spain, Brazil, and China.
Even after Arthur Mee passed away in 1943, new versions of the encyclopaedia continued to be made. The very last updated version, still called Arthur Mee's Children's Encyclopedia, came out in 1964.
The books themselves did not always have copyright or publishing dates printed inside. However, you could often guess how old a complete set was by looking at the title, the color, and the design of the cover. The very first release of The Children's Encyclopædia used the spelling "Encyclopædia" and had 8 volumes with brown covers. All later versions used the spelling "Encyclopedia" and had 10 volumes. Versions from the 1920s often had blue covers. By the 1940s, the covers were brown again and had a picture of a flaming torch on the spine of each book. In the 1950s, the covers were red. There was also at least one green-covered version from the 1920s. Another red-covered version with a special art deco pattern on the spine was from the mid-1930s.
In the mid-1960s, the Library of Congress (a big library in the US) noted only the 1925 edition and a 1953 edition. However, a 1960 printing was recorded as the 28th edition. The encyclopaedia was also known by other names, like Harmsworth's Children's Encyclopedia and Mee's Children's Encyclopedia.
The company Grolier Society bought the set of books in 1963. They announced that the encyclopaedia would slowly stop being printed by 1970.
An Event in Kashmir
In May 1973, some riots happened in Jammu and Kashmir, India. These events were sparked by a picture found in The Book of Knowledge, which had been in a local library for many years. The picture showed the Archangel Gabriel telling parts of the Quran to Muhammad. Some Muslims were upset by this visual depiction of Muhammad. The riots led to four people dying and over a hundred being hurt. After this, the sale of the encyclopaedia was banned, even though it was already out of print by that time.
