author
Rossiter Johnson
1840–1931
A prolific 19th- and early 20th-century American editor, historian, and storyteller, he helped bring classic literature and reference works to a wide audience. His career ranged from newspaper work to major encyclopedias, along with novels, poetry, and popular history.
4 Audiobooks
The Hero of Manila: Dewey on the Mississippi and the Pacific
by Rossiter Johnson
Campfire and battlefield : an illustrated history of the campaigns and conflicts of the great Civil War
by Rossiter Johnson, Selden Connor, John Brown Gordon, Henry W. B. (Henry Ward Beecher) Howard, O. O. (Oliver Otis) Howard, John Tyler Morgan, John Clark Ridpath
Phaeton Rogers: A Novel of Boy Life
by Rossiter Johnson
A History, of the War of 1812-15 Between the United States and Great Britain
by Rossiter Johnson
About the author
Born in Rochester, New York, on January 27, 1840, Rossiter Johnson built a long literary career as an author and editor. He graduated from the University of Rochester in 1863 and went on to work in journalism before taking on larger editorial projects.
Johnson became especially known for editing encyclopedias, dictionaries, and collected literary series. He was associated with major reference works including the American Cyclopaedia and later edited the Annual Cyclopaedia. He also helped popularize compact editions of classic books, making well-known writing more accessible to general readers.
Alongside his editorial work, he wrote histories, biographies, poetry, and fiction. Among his better-known books is Phaeton Rogers, a novel drawing on boyhood life in Rochester. He lived a remarkably long life for his era, dying on October 3, 1931, after decades spent shaping how readers discovered literature and history.