Bentley Family papers, 1849-1970

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Summary

Title:
Bentley Family papers
Dates:
1849-1970
Creators:
Bentley family.
Abstract:
The Bentley family was prominent in the nineteenth-century publishing industry. Richard Bentley (1794-1871), after joining his brother Samuel in a successful printing business (1819), partnered with Henry Colburn (1829) to begin the long-running Standard Novels series. After dissolving the partnership with Colburn (1832), Richard began Bentley's Miscellany (1837), which boasted Charles Dickens then W.H. Ainsworth as editors. Richard's son George Bentley (1828-1895) then grandson Richard Bentley (1854-1936) ran Richard Bentley & Son until 1898, when it was sold to Macmillans. The collection consists of diaries, business- and farm-related records, texts written or published by the Bentley family, and works on Bentley family history.
Extent:
2 document boxes and 1 half document box (1.25 linear ft.)
Language:
Finding aid is written in English.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Bentley Family papers (Collection 1474). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library.

Background

Scope and content:

Collection consists of manuscript and printed material relating to Richard Bentley (1794-1871), George Bentley (1828-1895), and Richard Bentley (1854-1936), as well as Richard Bentley publishing and Richard Bentley & Son publishing. Manuscript materials include diaries, farm and garden records, collected quotations from literary works, literary essays and humorous journals, lists of works published by Richard Bentley and other firms, stock certificates, and correspondence. Published works in the collection (often with inscriptions) include texts written or published by the Bentley family, various works related to Bentley family history and current family circumstances (as well as works on Upton and Slough, England), works given to the Bentleys, and printing catalogues.

Biographical / historical:

The Bentley family was a prominent nineteenth-century British publishing family. Richard Bentley (1794-1871) joined his brother Samuel Bentley in a successful printing business in 1819. From 1829 to 1832, Richard partnered with publisher Henry Colburn to form Colburn & Bentley. The pair began the series Standard Novels, the successful monthly reprints that ended in 1854 with 126 volumes (and included authors such as William Godwin, Jane Austen, Victor Hugo, Washington Irving, Leigh Hunt, Letitia Landon, and Harriet Beecher Stowe). After the split with Colburn, Richard continued to publish, and in 1837 he created the successful Bentley's Miscellany. Both Charles Dickens and W.H. Ainsworth edited the periodical at various points (with Dickens's Oliver Twist first appearing in its pages), and George Cruikshank contributed illustrations. In 1866, Richard merged Bentley's Miscellany with Temple Bar, and his son George Bentley (1828-1895) became editor the following year, also taking on the leadership of Richard Bentley & Son. George's son, Richard Bentley (1854-1936) then ran the business from the mid-1880s until selling it to Macmillans in 1898.

Acquisition information:
Justin G. Schiller, purchase, 1977.
Processing information:

Processed by Whitney Braun in the Center for Primary Research and Training (CFPRT), with assistance from Kelley Wolfe Bachli, 2009.

Arrangement:

The collection is organized into two series:

  1. Manuscript Material (Boxes 1, 3)
  2. Printed Works (Boxes 2, 3)

Physical location:
Stored off-site at SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact the UCLA Library Special Collections Reference Desk for paging information.
Rules or conventions:
Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: a Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Processed by Whitney Braun in the Center for Primary Research and Training (CFPRT), with assistance from Kelley Wolfe Bachli, 2009; machine-readable finding aid created by Caroline Cubé.
Date Prepared:
© 2009
Date Encoded:
Machine-readable finding aid derived from database containing container list structure and data, encoding added via MS Access and Notetab Pro; Date of source: 2009; frontmatter gathered MARC Record. Supplementary encoding and revision supplied by Caroline Cubé.

Access and use

Restrictions:

COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF: Open for research. Advance notice required for access. Contact the UCLA Library Special Collections Reference Desk for paging information.

Terms of access:

Property rights to the physical object belong to the UCLA Library Special Collections. Literary rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Bentley Family papers (Collection 1474). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library.

Location of this collection:
A1713 Charles E. Young Research Library
Box 951575
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575, US
Contact:
(310) 825-4988
AskLSC@library.ucla.edu
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