McLoughlin Bros., Inc. was a New York manufacturing company active between 1858Frontispiece, such as it is, of The Easy To Read Story Book and 1920.
As a publisher itself, the company was a pioneer in color-printing technologies in children's books.Wasowicz, Laura."Brief History of the McLoughlin Brothers". American Antiquarian Society, 2003. The company specialized in retellings or bowdlerizations of classic stories for children.
McLoughlin Bros. also produced board games, puzzles, and paper toys.
History
The artistic and commercial roots of the McLoughlin firm were first developed by John McLoughlin, Jr. (1827–1905) who made his younger brother Edmund McLoughlin (1833 or 4 –1889) a partner in 1855. By 1886, the firm published a wide range of items, including cheap chapbooks, large folio picture books, linen books, puzzles, games, paper soldiers and paper dolls. In 1884, its typewriter appeared, which sold for $10.
Many of the earliest and most-valuable board games in America were produced by McLoughlin Brothers of New York. In 1920, the corporation was sold to Milton Bradley & Company. McLoughlin ceased game production at this time, but continued publishing its picture books. Milton Bradley itself was purchased by Hasbro in 1984 and merged with Parker Brothers in 1998 to form Hasbro Games. The two became brands of Hasbro until 2009 when they were retired in favor of the Hasbro name.
The company worked with numerous artists of the time, including Sarah Noble Ives, William Bruton, Edward P. Cogger, Enos Comstock, Frances Bassett Comstock, Georgina A. Davis, Henry Walker Herrick, Justin H. Howard, May Audubon Post, Victor Renwick, Ida Waugh, and Lois Williams. These artists created richly colored watercolors as well as pen-and-ink drawings, which were adapted to the printing processes for mass production.
John McLoughlin, Jr.'s death in 1905 caused the firm the loss of his artistic and commercial leadership, so in 1920, it was sold to the Milton Bradley Company. Following that, the Brooklyn factory was closed and the firm moved to Springfield, Massachusetts. During its time as a division of Milton Bradley, McLoughlin ceased game production although it continued publicating picture books. McLoughlin Bros. enjoyed some success in the 1930s with mechanical paper toys called "Jolly Jump-Ups" but it stopped production during World War II.
In 1951, the "McLoughlin Brothers" trademark was sold to New York toy manufacturer Julius Kushner. At that time, their collection of original artwork for publication was split between members of the board. A portion of that collection was later donated to the American Antiquarian Society. In 1954, McLoughlin Brothers books were sold to Grosset & Dunlap. Kushner released some McLoughlin's successful products such as the Jolly Jump-Ups.
On the other hand, the McLoughlin line of children's books was sold to Grosset & Dunlap in June 1954. Several books bearing the 'McLoughlin Bros.' imprint were issued until the 1970s when the name dropped out of print.
Works published Beverly Gray 1886 McLoughlin Bros' Catalog 2 Cent Books May Bell Series (Plain and Colored) Little Red Hen Series Dr. Watts' Divine and Moral Songs 3 Cent Books Little Object Finders' ABC Farm Yard ABC Rebus ABC Little Pet's Primer Golden ABC Mother's Series Father's Series Uncle Dick's Series 5 Cent Books Peter Prim's Series--New Edition. England Fairy Moonbeam Series Susie Sunshine's Series--New Edition. England Slovenly Peter Series 6 Cent Books Every Baby's ABC Little Boys' and Girls' ABC Noah's Ark ABC Major's Alphabet Nursery ABC and Simple Speller Crowquills Fairy Tales Miss Merryheart Series Aunt Mary's Series--Old Books Re-printed Aunt Mavor's Series Willie Winkie's Series Yellow Dwarf Series Natural History Series Cinderella Series Dame Dingle's Series Joyful Tales Fairy ABS ABC of Objects Tom Thumb Alphabet 10 Cent Books Parlor Plays ABC of Animals ABC of Nature Aunt Jenny's Series--Old Books Re-printed Mamma Lovechild's Series Home Primer Kate Greenaway Series Over the Hills Series Painting Books Greenaway Mother Goose The Ark Alphabet Aunt Mayflower's Alphabet Arthur's Alphabet Child's First Book Darling's ABC The Child's Home ABC Book Picture Alphabet The Great Big ABC Half-Hours with the Bible Golden Light Series Aunt Matilda's Series--New Editions--New Covers Grandmother Goose Series Uncle John's Drolleries Uncle Ned's Picture Books Aunt Kate's Series--New Gilt Cover Picture Books
See also
List of companies based in New York City List of publishers of children's books List of toys
References
External links
Mother Goose in an Air-Ship: McLoughlin Bros. 19th Century Children’s Books from the Liman Collection (exhibition), Brooklyn Historical Society, September 2007 to February 2009 The McLoughlin Bros. of New York, The Gottesman Libraries, Columbia University Uncle Tom's Cabin Toy and Picture Books at the University of South Florida McLoughlin Brothers Archival Drawings and Prints at the American Antiquarian Society McLoughlin Brothers Catalogs, Price Lists, and Order Forms 1860-1949 at the American Antiquarian Society