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Charles Jacobs Peterson
Charles Jacobs Peterson
Born	July 20, 1818; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died	March 4, 1887 (aged 68); Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Resting place	Laurel Hill Cemetery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Pen name	Harry Cavendish, Harry Danforth, J. Thornton Randolph
Occupation	editor, publisher, writer
Language	American English
Alma mater	University of Pennsylvania
Period	Modern
Genres	Anti-Tom literature, history
Employer(s)	Graham's Magazine, The Saturday Evening Post, Peterson's Magazine, Philadelphia Bulletin
Spouse	Sarah Powell
Parents	Thomas P. Peterson, Elizabeth Snelling Jacobs

Charles Jacobs Peterson (July 20, 1818 - March 4, 1887) was an American editor, publisher and writer. He worked as an editor at Graham's Magazine, was an owner and partner of The Saturday Evening Post, and founded Peterson's Magazine. He published several fictional and non-fictional history books under his own name and the Anti-Tom literature novel The Cabin and Parlor; or, Slaves and Masters under the pseudonym J. Thornton Randolph. He was a member of the Peterson family of publishers including his cousins Robert Evans Peterson and Henry Peterson.

Early life and education

Peterson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 20, 1819, to Thomas P. Peterson and Elizabeth Snelling Jacobs. He studied law at the University of Pennsylvania and graduated in 1838. He was admitted to the bar prior to graduation, but never practiced law.^[1]

Career

He became an owner and partner in The Saturday Evening Post and editor at Graham's Magazine. At Graham's, he shared an editorial desk with Edgar Allan Poe, who later included him on a list of "journalistic ninnies".^[2] In 1842, he founded Ladies' National Magazine to compete with the popular Godey's Lady Book. In 1848, the name was changed to Peterson's Ladies' National Magazine and again to just Peterson's Magazine from 1858 to 1898. Ann S. Stephens was listed as an editor and contributor but the magazine was primarily run by Peterson.^[3] By the 1870s, it had a circulation of 150,000.^[4] Peterson edited the magazine until his death.^[5]^[6] He worked as an editorial writer for the Philadelphia Bulletin starting in 1847.^[1]

In 1852, Peterson published the novel The Cabin and Parlor; or, Slaves and Masters under the pseudonym J. Thornton Randolph, an early example of the Anti-Tom literature which arose in response to Uncle Tom's Cabin. It was published by T.B. Peterson, Ltd.; Theophilus B. Peterson was one of Charles' brothers and a leading publisher of cheap and sensational fiction.^[7] He framed the argument that slave owners took a parental responsibility to the slave, whereas commercial interests in the North took advantage of the free negro.^[8] It was adapted to a stage performance and was performed at the Richmond Theater in Richmond, Virginia in 1854 and 1861.^[9] Peterson was not necessarily defending the institution of slavery, but instead a gradualism for ending of slavery in future instead of a destruction which would fracture the United States.^[10] After the American Civil War broke out, he sided with the Union.^[11] However, he kept politics and any mention of the war out of Peterson's Magazine since he believed women wanted an escape from the gruesome news of the war.^[12]

He published other stories and articles under the pseudonym Harry Cavendish and Harry Danforth.^[1]

He died on March 4, 1887, in Philadelphia^[13] and was interred at Laurel Hill Cemetery.^[14]

Personal life

He married Sarah Powell.^[15]

Publications

Peterson published the Anti-Tom literature novel The Cabin and Parlor under the pseudonym J. Thornton Randolph

Some were originally published in serial form in Graham's Magazine or Peterson's:^[16]

Agnes Courtenay (1847)
The Oath of Marion (1847)
Grace Dudley; or Arnold at Saratoga. An Historical Novel., Philadelphia: T.B. Peterson, 1849
The Valley Farm. An Autobiography of an Orphan., Philadelphia: T.B. Peterson, 1850
Cruising in the Last War, Philadelphia: T.B. Peterson, 1850
The Cabin and Parlor; or, Slaves and Masters (as J. Thornton Randolph) (1852)
Kate Aylesford. A Story of the Refugees., Philadelphia: T.B. Peterson, 1855
The Old Stone Mansion, Philadelphia: T.B. Peterson and Brothers, 1859
Mabel or Darkness at Dawn (18??)

Nonfiction

Military Heroes of the Revolution (8 volumes) (1847)
The Military Heroes of the War of 1812: With a Narrative of the War, Philadelphia: James B. Smith & Co., 1852
Naval Heroes of the United States (1850)
A History of the American Revolution, and Historical Sketches of the Military Heroes of the War of Independence., Philadelphia: J. and J. L. Gihon, 1852
The American Navy: Being an Authentic History of the United States Navy, and Biographical Sketches of American Naval Heroes, from the Formation of the Navy to the Close of the Mexican War, Philadelphia: Jas. B. Smith & Co., 1856

References

Citations

^ ^a ^b ^c Charles Peterson Archived 2016-05-16 at the Wayback Machine, The Beadle and Adams Dime Novel Digitization Project, Retrieved September 14, 2012
^ Hayne 1969, p. 511, via Poe to Frederick W. Thomas, Feb. 3, 1842, John Ward Ostrom, ed., Letters of Edgar Allan Poe (Harvard, 1948), I, 193..
^ Lightfoot, D. Tulla (2019). The Culture and Art of Death in 19th Century America. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 80. ISBN 978-1-4766-6537-5. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
^ Weigley, Russell Frank; Wainwright, Nicholas B.; Wolf, Edwin (1982). Philadelphia: a 300 year history. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. p. 453. ISBN 0-393-01610-2. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
^ Charles Jacobs Peterson, Edgar Allan Poe Society, Retrieved September 14, 2012
^ Mott, Frank Luther. A History of American Magazines, 1850-1865, Volume 2, Supplement Sketch 6 (history of magazine) (1938, 1970)
^ Tebbel, John William Between covers: The rise and transformation of book publishing in America, p. 71 (1987)
^ Schermerhorn, Calvin (2018). Unrequited Toil: A History of United States Slavery. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press. p. 160. ISBN 9781107027664. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
^ Irelan, Scott R. (2014). Enacting Nationhood: Identity, Ideology and the Theatre, 1855-99. Newcastle upon Tyne, UK: Cambridge Scholars Publishing. p. 31. ISBN 978-1-4438-5829-8. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
^ Hayne 1969, p. 512.
^ Hayne 1969, p. 514.
^ Stokes, Mason (2001). The Color of Sex - Whiteness, Heterosexuality & the Fictions of White Supremacy. Duke University Press. pp. 25–26. ISBN 9780822326205. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
^ Appletons' Cyclopaedia of American Biography - Volume 4. 1900. p. 744. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
^ "Charles J. Peterson". www.remembermyjourney.com. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
^ Johnson, Rossiter (1904). The Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans. Boston: The Biographical Society. p. 304. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
^ Hayne 1969, p. 513.

Sources

Hayne, Barrie (October 1969). "Standing on Neutral Ground: Charles Jacob Peterson of Peterson's". Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography. 93 (4): 510–526. Retrieved 7 January 2024.