George Smith, a Memoir

Cambridge University Press publishes this month a reprint of  George Smith's memoirs:

George Smith, a Memoir

With Some Pages of Autobiography

Cambridge University Press

Cambridge Library Collection - History of Printing, Publishing and Libraries

ISBN: 9781108047647
May 2022

This 1902 book, originally intended for private circulation, is a memoir of George Smith (1824–1901), founder, proprietor and publisher of The Cornhill Magazine and later the Dictionary of National Biography. The small volume, compiled by Smith's wife, consists of a memoir of Smith by Sidney Lee, followed by four short autobiographical pieces that Smith wrote for The Cornhill. He recalls his years at the publishing house of Smith, Elder and Co.; his encounters with Charlotte Brontë, who stayed with the Smiths in London; his idea of founding a magazine; and the 'lawful pleasures' of court cases for libel. The final item is Sir Leslie Stephen's obituary of Smith, first published in The Cornhill. The book, illustrated with two portraits of Smith, and a photograph of his memorial tablet in St Paul's Cathedral, provides an engaging portrait of a significant Victorian publisher and man of letters.