author
Rossiter Johnson
1840–1931
An energetic editor and man of letters, he helped shape how American readers discovered history, biography, and classic literature in the late 19th century. He wrote novels, poetry, and popular history as well, bringing a wide range of subjects to general readers.
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, in 1840, Rossiter Johnson built a long career as an American author and editor. He graduated from the University of Rochester and worked in journalism before moving into large-scale editorial projects that made his name.
Johnson became known for editing encyclopedias, biographical reference works, and literary collections. He was associated with major works including American Cyclopaedia, Appletons' Annual Cyclopaedia, and Appletons' Cyclopaedia of American Biography, and he also helped popularize compact editions of classic books for everyday readers.
Alongside his editorial work, he wrote history, fiction, and verse. One of his best-known books is Phaeton Rogers, a novel drawing on boyhood life in Rochester. He died in 1931, leaving behind the record of a writer and editor who spent decades organizing knowledge and literature for a broad public.