Wholesale Price List of Newspapers and Periodicals

D. D. Cottrell‘s Subscription AgencyProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 1.9

Word count: 262K words
Chapters: 27

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Wholesale Price List of Newspapers and PeriodicalsAuthor: D. D. Cottrell's Subscription Agency,Language: English, Class: Z: Bibliography, Library science, Release Date: May 1, 2004

Editor's review

Compiled and printed by D. D. Cottrell's subscription agency, this is a wholesale price list of newspapers and periodicals—a typical piece of trade operating documentation rather than a book for reading. Its value lies in preserving original price information from a particular period of periodical distribution and subscription agency work: which newspapers and periodicals fell within the agency's scope, how they were priced by quantity, and what kinds of buyers they served—details that offer first-hand material for studying the history of publishing and distribution, periodical circulation, and the business model of subscription agencies. For ordinary readers it offers little pleasure in continuous reading; for researchers in book and periodical history, bibliography, and distribution history, however, it is a searchable, comparable data-oriented text. It is best read as a historical reference tool: first examine the arrangement and classification scheme, then extract prices and titles into tables, taking care to distinguish wholesale from retail and agency from direct subscription. Because it is a historical price list, its currency units and measures differ considerably from today's, so it should not be directly converted into modern prices for simple comparison; instead, it should be understood within the distribution ecology of its time.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Researchers in publishing and distribution history and print circulation who need original price lists and agency business materials
Readers in bibliography and textual studies interested in periodical lists, classification, and subscription channels
Second-hand book and periodical trade professionals interested in historical subscription agency models and pricing methods
Economic and business historians who can use it as a sample of periodical management history

Not a good fit for

Ordinary readers seeking continuous narrative or literary content
Practical readers looking for contemporary periodical subscription prices and purchasing channels
Beginners seeking systematic theoretical analysis rather than raw price data

Reading tips

Begin with the arrangement and classification headings to understand by what standard the price list organizes titles and prices.
Extract titles, categories, quantities, and prices into a table for easy comparison and later retrieval.
Take care to distinguish wholesale, retail, agency, and direct subscription, avoiding conflating different pricing methods.
Read alongside works on publishing and distribution history from the same period, situating prices within the distribution ecology of the time.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

What use is this price list to today's readers?

Its main use is as historical material. Researchers can learn about the scope of a periodical agency's business in a particular period, its title lists, quantity-based pricing methods, and subscription channels, for research in publishing and distribution history, bibliography, or business history. If ordinary readers want contemporary subscription prices or purchasing channels, this historical price list cannot help.

Can it be read as a recommended periodical catalogue?

It is not advisable to read it that way. The price list is organized for quoting prices and agency business, not for content review; it usually does not explain a publication's purpose, quality, or intended readership. Treating it as a recommended catalogue easily leads to misjudgment; a better approach is to use it as a directory and price data, and turn to other sources to learn about the content and background of specific publications.

Can the prices in the book be directly converted into present-day money?

Direct conversion is not recommended. Historical prices involve the currency units, measures, quantity discounts, and agency conventions of the time, which differ greatly from today's price system; simple conversion easily leads to misleading conclusions. A more reliable approach is to understand their relative position and commercial meaning in light of background materials such as wages, prices, and distribution scale from the same period.

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

D. D. Cottrell‘s Subscription Agency Author

D. D. Cottrell's Subscription Agency appears as an institutional byline, and public information about it is limited; neither its nature nor its background is clearly recorded. Judging from its only work in the collection, Wholesale Price List of Newspapers and Periodicals, the agency seems to have been engaged in periodical subscription services, supplying wholesale price information on newspapers and periodicals to libraries, booksellers, and other subscribers. Such price lists were usually arranged by title and gave subscription rates, discount terms, and ordering conditions, making them practical trade catalogues rather than general reading. Their style is itemized and data-oriented, valuing accuracy and ease of reference. In terms of influence, lists of this kind serve as primary sources for studying the distribution channels, subscription prices, and agency system of the press of the period, and are of reference value to researchers in publishing and library history.