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Notable people · Historian

Henry Howe

Connecticut-born historian whose three-volume Historical Collections of Ohio (completed 1891) was the best-selling Ohio history of the 19th century. Pioneered advance subscription sales in 1885.

At a glance

Born
1816-10-11
Died
1893-10-14
Known as
Historian

Life story

Henry Howe was born in New Haven, Connecticut, in 1816, into a publishing family; his father Hezekiah published the first edition of Noah Webster's American Dictionary in 1828. He learned the printing trade and worked for newspapers.

In 1838 he read John Warner Barber's Connecticut history and set out to write similar books. He and Barber made state histories from 1840, and Howe published volumes for New York and New Jersey in 1841 and 1842.

He turned to Ohio in 1846 and 1847; the first edition sold over 18,000 copies. He married in 1848 and moved to Cincinnati.

In 1885-87 he toured Ohio again, taking subscriptions for a new edition. His three-volume Historical Collections of Ohio was finished in 1891 and was among the best-selling Ohio books of the century. He died in Columbus on October 14, 1893, and the legislature bought the plates for $20,000.

Timeline

  • 1816-10-11: Born (New Haven, CT) source
  • 1838: Inspired by Barber's Connecticut history (Connecticut) source
  • 1841: Historical Collections of New York published (New York) source
  • 1846: Begins Ohio research (Ohio) source
  • 1848: Marries and moves to Cincinnati (Cincinnati, OH) source
  • 1885: Tours Ohio taking subscriptions (Ohio) source
  • 1891: Three-volume Historical Collections of Ohio completed (Ohio) source
  • 1893-10-14: Dies (Columbus, OH) source

What Henry is known for

  • Historical Collections of Ohio (1847; expanded 1888-91)
  • Historical Collections of Ohio (1847; three volumes 1888-91)
  • Historical Collections of New York (1841)
  • Historical Collections of New Jersey (1842)

Honors and things named for them

  • Ohio legislature bought the copyright and plates for $20,000

Family

  • father: Hezekiah Howe

Places in Ohio to see

Ohio places

Where Henry Howe was born, lived, worked and is remembered, with the ZIP code, town and county pages for each.

Myths and corrections

  • Claim that Howe's Ohio volumes outsold Grant's memoirs is the Wikipedia article's wording; not checked against sales records.

Further reading

Sources

Confidence. Medium: the main facts were confirmed, but some details (often an address or ZIP code) were not.

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