The Lucile Project

PUBLISHER: R. Worthington & Co., New York, 1867-1885; Worthington Company, New York, 1885-1893

ABOUT: Started in Montreal and Boston, moved to 750 Broadway in 1874; 28 Lafayette Place 1876, then to 770 Broadway (DLB 49). ... The Worthington publications were mainly sets of standard writers, twelvemos of popular and standard works, and juveniles. The catalog prices placed on these books were not particularly low, but as was so often the case with this type of publication, especially during the 1880s, the actual selling price was much less than the advertised price. Standard twelvemos listed at one dollar, and complete sets listed at somewhat over a dollar a volume sold for much less.... In 1882 Worthington purchased more than a hundred and fifteen thousand cloth-bound "standards" from John W. Lovell, who had decided to give up this type of publishing. It was reported that "This purchase, aggregating in retail prices about $150,000, is a most extraordinary event in the history of the New York booktrade" [Publishers' Weekly 21:195 (1882)].

The location information from DLB and elsewhere below in this headnote is incorrect. In fact, Worthington (1834-1894) established (perhaps purchased an already established) stationary store in Montreal about but quickly moved into bookselling, and publishing, operating as R. Worthington or R. Worthington & Co. until 1874, expending much energy importing books from England. He opened a branch in Boston 1872-1874, then a branch in New York City, at 750 Broadway, in December 1874, consolidating all his operations there through March 1880. In May 1880 he moved to 770 Broadway, with all of his retail (public facing) business remaining there until 1885. In May 1883, however, he purchased a new facility at 28 Lafayette Place to which he moved all his (wholesale, trade) importing and publishing business. where it remained until the firm was dissolved in 1893-94. In December 1885, however, the retail branch was moved to new and larger quarters at 747 Broadway until, also, disolved in 1893-94.

Richard Worthington in 1883
Engraved by Robert Washington Shoppell
for Biographer (New York) 1:1 1883)

In 1884 Worthington bought the remainder of the Lovell company's books, "all their standard sets of books, red-line poets--etc., except the Lovell Library" [Publishers' Weekly 25:191 (1884)]. These sets of George Eliot, Thackery, Dickens, Scott, and othrs, purchased at a low price, furnished good material for price cutting. / In 1889 when a proposed "combination" of cheap book publishers was being discussed, Mr. Worthington was in favor of it. Said he, "You see we've all got a lot of dead property on our hands in these plates. This concern alone has $300,000 worth. As long as the present demoralized condition of things exist growing out of reckless competition this property is valueless. [New York Herald July 7, 1889, p21]. [Worthington was not correct in this: his competitors bought the plates for virtually nothing, enabling them to print and market copies at prices that undercut Worthington's own very low prices, thus making the stock he had bought near valueless -- one of the prncipal causes of his financial collape in 1893].

In 1885 R. Worthington & Co. "was compelled to make an assignment ... for the benefit of his creditors." The company was held by Worthington himself, supported by a relatively small group of investors and creditors (e.g., printers, binders, auctioneers), and its oblgations substantially exceeded its income and assets easily converted to cash. Worthington offered the investors and creditors a sequence of delayed payments over three years, with no interest, which allowed him to continue the business. Nonetheless, by mid-summer Worthington had converted the business to a joint stock company renamed "The Worthington Company," a move which increased flexibility in some respects but brought with it additonal legal requirements.

In early 1893 The Worthington Company failed financially and Richard Worthington asked for a court-appointed Receiver to sort out assets and liabilities, using assets to arrange payment at least a portion of their investment to investors in the company. Another publisher, J. J. Little, agreed to accept this role. Receivers were normally lawyers, usually with knowledge of corporate law, and it was unusal for a judge to appoint a person who had long experience in same field as the failed company. In doing so, the judge hoped the Receiver would be to continue the business for a time or, at least, to dispose of assets in a way designed to maximize their value, hence enhancing investor compensation. Little took his responsibilities seriously and found evidence of sensational fraud. Publishers' Weekly followed closely the continuing saga of legal actions and Richard Worthington's personal fortunes through 1894. This story is fully captured on an adjoining page, The Failure of The R. Worthington Company. One consequence was a public auction of the reprint Company's stereoplates, a well attended event, following which Publisher's Weekly published a full inventory with prices realized, a rare opportunity to observe the dollar values which quality plate sets could fetch in this period.

[Report in Publishers’ Weekly 45:1162, May 5, 1894, p684.] --MR WORTHINGTON DISCHARGED. -- Richard Worthington was arraigned in the Tombs Court on Friday, April 27, on complaint of Joseph J. Little, receiver, who charged him with perjury. He furnished bail for examination on Tuesday, May 1. Justice Martin in the Tombs Court on that day discharged Mr. from custody.

[The American Newsman II:5 (May 1894), p14]. --At the Worthington sale J. J. Little, receiver of the Worthington Co., submitted to Mr. Anthony Comstock some book which he was told Mr. Comstock had restrained Mr. Worthington from selling some ten years back, and submitted to the court the question whether he had any right to sell as assets of the company books that had been put under Mr. Comstock's ban. In looking over these forbidden books, Mr. Comstock for the first time glanced into the pages of "Tom Jones," and is shocked to think that this book has been sold for one hundred and forty-five years. In future he will do his best to check its sale. Gibbon, Thackeray, and Coleridge held different opinions about "Tom Jones," hut they are only immortal critics and -- had read the book.

[Publishers’ Weekly 46:1185, October 13, 1894, p584.] OBITUARY NOTES. --RICHARD WORTHINGTON died suddenly before midnight of Sunday, the 7th inst., at his home in Sea Cliff, L. I. He had for some time been treated for diabetes, which, aggravated by the worry of the past six months, no doubt hastened his death. He appeared to be in good health on Sunday, and attended church in the evening. He retired about eleven o'clock, but got up again, complaining of a suffocating sensation. His wife and Miss Sproule were present, and the latter went for Dr. Zabriskie, of Glen Cove but on their return found that Mr. Worthington was dead.
Mr. Worthington was born 1834 in Preston, Lancashire, England. His father was a merchant of comfortable means, and gave his son a good education. When eighteen years old young Worthington entered the grain business, and after pursuing this occupation for eight years emigrated to Canada and settled in Montreal, where for a time he continued the grain and subsequently a commission business, without much profit, however. Encouraged by a friend, he bought a book and stationery store in Montreal in 1861. His first venture in publishing occurred about this time, and was a "History of the Province of Canada." which had a wide circulation. Mr. Worthington, however, devoted the most of his attention to the stationery trade, which in a few years grew to considerable proportions.
Encouraged by his success he established a branch in Boston in 1867, which in time absorbed all his attention and he gave up his Montreal business. In Boston the character of his business changed altogether, and henceforth he made the sale of standard English books his specialty. In 1874 be opened a branch house at 750 Broadway, to which he removed altogether in I876, after having failed in Boston. At this time Mr. Worthington had one of the largest and most carefully selected stocks of rare English books that could be found in New York City.
From January, 1885 (in which year he formed the R. Worthington Co., and since which he occupied successively the stores at 770 Broadway, 28 Lafayette Place, and 747 Broadway), to January, 1893, Mr. Worthington's business career was marked, and finally closed in a failure, the details of which are still fresh in the mind of the trade. Mr. Worthington was always more of a bookseller than a publisher, and preferred to purchase an entire edition of a new English publication rather than to assume the copyright of it on his own account. He was the importer of the English edition of “Chambers' Encyclopedia" and he also introduced other standard works of reference. He was a man of vast schemes, which, owing to lack of capital and loose calculations, invariably ended in shipwreck.

When the United States Book Company was formed in 1890 it took over a considerable part of the Worthington stock, including the Franklin Edition of popular twelvemos, and the cloth-bound World Library. When the United States Book Company failed, much of the stock came back again into the hand of Worthington. / In January 1885, the Publishers' Weekly reported that one of the chief failures of the previous year was "that of the Worthington Company, which put to an end a business that had long been a source of demoralization in the trade" [Publishers' Weekly 47:7 (1895)]. (Shove).

See Tools [tab on ribbon above] for citation to Stern article and an 1883 biography and portrait.

LUCILE’s ISSUED BY R. Worthington & Co.:

Index of editions of Lucile: Alligator (leather), 1886; Apple Blossom (embossed leather), 1888-1892; Arundel (cloth), 1881-1887; Arundel (cloth), same, gilt and gilt edges, 1888; Arundel Quartos (cloth), 1884;"Beautifully Illustrated" (cloth), 1883-1892; Caxton Library (cloth), 1881-1883; Franklin (cloth), 1887-1892; Household (cloth), 1885-1889; Lovell's Red Line (cloth), 1880-1884; New Red Line (cloth), 1885-1887, 1889-1892; Pine and Bamboo (embossed leather), 1887-1889; Presentation (cloth), 1885-1892; Rosebud (leather), 1888-1889; World Library (cloth), 1890; Worthington's Eureka Edition (cloth), 1882; Worthington's Octavos (cloth), 1890-1891.

Index of editions of Meredith's Poetical Works: Alligator, 1886; Arundel, 1881-1888; Arundel. (same, gilt and gilt edges), 1888; Caxton Library, 1881-1883; Lovell's Red Line, 1880-1884; New Red Line, 1885-1890; Worthington's Editions in Morocco and Half Russia, 1882;Worthington's Eureka Edition, 1882.

© Sidney F. Huttner 2010. All rights reserved.