Ellery Sedgwick
Encyclopedia
Ellery Sedgwick was an American
editor, brother of Henry Dwight Sedgwick
.
to Henry Dwight Sedgwick II and Henrietta Ellery (Sedgwick), grand daughter of William Ellery. His ancestors, a leading family of Stockbridge, Massachusetts
, established a tradition of literary achievement, including authors Catherine Maria Sedgwick and Henry Dwight Sedgwick III.
in 1890 and Harvard University
in 1894. He returned to Groton in 1894 and taught Classics there until 1896. Subsequently, he was assistant editor of the Youth's Companion at Boston (1896–1900) and in New York editor of Leslie's Monthly Magazine
(1900–05) and the American Magazine (1906–07). He was associated with McClure's Magazine for short periods and with the publishing house of D. Appleton
& Co., in 1909 returning to Boston to be editor of the Atlantic Monthly
and president of the Atlantic Monthly Company. In 1915 he was elected to the National Institute of Arts and Letters. From his pen came The Life of Thomas Paine
(1899).
When Sedgwick purchased the Atlantic Monthly in 1908, the monthly circulation was 15,000 and the magazine ran an annual deficit of $5000. He worked quickly to reverse the trend and by 1928, he had increased circulation to 137,000. He has been credited with discovering many writers and with being the first American publisher to print the works of Ernest Hemingway
. Sedgwick resigned as editor in 1938 and sold the magazine in 1939.
made Sedgwick bedridden for a few months in 1938-1939, and he was also plagued with arthritis. He died in 1960 in Washington, D.C.
, and is buried in the Sedgwick family plot
in Stockbridge.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
editor, brother of Henry Dwight Sedgwick
Henry Dwight Sedgwick
Henry Dwight Sedgwick III was an American lawyer and author.-Early life and career:Sedgwick was in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, the second child of Henry Dwight Sedgwick II and Henrietta Ellery . On his paternal grandmother's side, he was part of the New England Dwight family...
.
Early life
He was born in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to Henry Dwight Sedgwick II and Henrietta Ellery (Sedgwick), grand daughter of William Ellery. His ancestors, a leading family of Stockbridge, Massachusetts
Stockbridge, Massachusetts
Stockbridge is a town in Berkshire County in Western Massachusetts. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,947 at the 2010 census...
, established a tradition of literary achievement, including authors Catherine Maria Sedgwick and Henry Dwight Sedgwick III.
Career
He graduated from Groton SchoolGroton School
Groton School is a private, Episcopal, college preparatory boarding school located in Groton, Massachusetts, U.S. It enrolls approximately 375 boys and girls, from the eighth through twelfth grades...
in 1890 and Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1894. He returned to Groton in 1894 and taught Classics there until 1896. Subsequently, he was assistant editor of the Youth's Companion at Boston (1896–1900) and in New York editor of Leslie's Monthly Magazine
Frank Leslie's Weekly
Frank Leslie's Weekly, later often known in short as Leslie's Weekly, was an American illustrated literary and news magazine founded in 1852 and continuing publication well into the 20th century. As implied by its name, it was published weekly, on Tuesdays. Its first editor was John Y. Foster...
(1900–05) and the American Magazine (1906–07). He was associated with McClure's Magazine for short periods and with the publishing house of D. Appleton
Daniel Appleton
Daniel Appleton was an American publisher.-Biography:He was born in Haverhill, Massachusetts. After a few years of schooling, he started a general store in Haverill. Later, he moved to Boston where he sold dry-goods imported from England...
& Co., in 1909 returning to Boston to be editor of the Atlantic Monthly
The Atlantic Monthly
The Atlantic is an American magazine founded in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1857. It was created as a literary and cultural commentary magazine. It quickly achieved a national reputation, which it held for more than a century. It was important for recognizing and publishing new writers and poets,...
and president of the Atlantic Monthly Company. In 1915 he was elected to the National Institute of Arts and Letters. From his pen came The Life of Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine
Thomas "Tom" Paine was an English author, pamphleteer, radical, inventor, intellectual, revolutionary, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States...
(1899).
When Sedgwick purchased the Atlantic Monthly in 1908, the monthly circulation was 15,000 and the magazine ran an annual deficit of $5000. He worked quickly to reverse the trend and by 1928, he had increased circulation to 137,000. He has been credited with discovering many writers and with being the first American publisher to print the works of Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American author and journalist. His economic and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the...
. Sedgwick resigned as editor in 1938 and sold the magazine in 1939.
Personal life
Sedgwick married Mabel Cabot in 1904. They had four children: Ellery Jr., Cabot, Theodora, and Henrietta. Mabel Sedgwick died in 1937. He remarried in 1939 to an Englishwoman, (Isabel) Marjorie Russell.Death
SciaticaSciatica
Sciatica is a set of symptoms including pain that may be caused by general compression or irritation of one of five spinal nerve roots that give rise to each sciatic nerve, or by compression or irritation of the left or right or both sciatic nerves. The pain is felt in the lower back, buttock, or...
made Sedgwick bedridden for a few months in 1938-1939, and he was also plagued with arthritis. He died in 1960 in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, and is buried in the Sedgwick family plot
Sedgwick Pie
The "Sedgwick Pie" is one of the more unusual family cemetery plots in the United States. It is the family burial plot of the Sedgwick family in Stockbridge Cemetery, Stockbridge, Massachusetts, and gets its nickname from its shape and layout.-Description:...
in Stockbridge.