Bath, Art and Architecture: The Hardings - 18th Century Booksellers on St Martin's Lane.

Friday 15 December 2023

The Hardings - 18th Century Booksellers on St Martin's Lane.

Some unedited notes -

The Hardings - 18th Century Booksellers on the Pavement, St Martins Lane.

John Harding, and his son Samuel Harding and to confuse issues his son another Samuel Harding.

At the Post House, Bible & Anchor on the Pavement, St Martin's Lane, London from 1678.

John Harding was a General Post Receiver 1708 - 22.

Samuel Harding ditto 1723 - 54.

Samuel Harding succeeded his father in 1734.

Will of Samuel Harding published 1777, died and buried in Enfield Middlesex.

John Harding bookseller in London, at (i) Bible and Anchor, St. Paul's Churchyard; (2) Bible and Anchor, Newport Street, near Leicester Fields; (3) Blew Anchor and Bible St. Martin's Lane. 1678–1712?

Entered in the Term Catalogue of Mich. 1678. Christopher Nesse's Christian's walk and work on earth ... Second edition. [T.C. i. 336.]

Dunton became acquainted with John Harding at Sturbridge Fair and dealt with him for several years, finding him [p. 223] "a very honest man, an understanding bookseller and a zealous Church of England man, yet no bigot".

In 1684 he moved to Leicester Fields, and among his apprentices was Bernard Lintot (made free 1699), who had been turned over to him from Tho. Linyard in 1690.Lintot published independently at The Sign of the Cross Keys in St Martins Lane from about 1698. After his marriage in 1705 he moved to Fleet St. He was fiend and publisher of Alexander Pope until a seious fall out in 1725.

In 1709, among those who received subscriptions for the Corpus omn. vet. Poetarum Latinorum was—Harding, in St. Martin's Lane, who is probably identical with John Harding. [T.C. ill. 657.]

In 1713 he subscribed to the fund for the relief of William Bowyer the elder.

https://www.grubstreetproject.net/people/1078/works/

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HARDING, SAMUEL. Despite the fact that John Harding (? his father) was paying rates on the house up till 1734 (as mentioned above [John Harding]), Samuel Harding was already engaged in the bookselling trade as early as 1724.

In this year his imprint "S. Harding at the Post House in St. Martin's Lane" appeared on a publication by Daniel Defoe entitled 'The Great Law of Subordination consider'd; Or the Insolence and Unsufferable Behaviour of Servants in England duly enquir'd into.'

An advertisement in the Daily Post, 10 Jan., 1726, describes the position of the Post House as "on the Pavement." I have a finely engraved trade card of "Samuel Harding, bookseller and stationer at the Bible and Anchor on the Pavement in St. Martin's Lane," on which he claims to make "most excellent Black Ink, call'd Amsterdam Ink." This card would have been issued about the time that he was announcing in the Daily Advertiser (1741–2) that he was "taking in" advertisements for that paper. MacMichael, in his 'Charing Cross' (p. 171), says " This Harding seems to have been 'the author of a little book on the 'Monograms of Old Engravers,' and here he sold old prints." It was to this shop that Wilson, the Sergeant-Painter, took an etching of his own which was sold to Hudson as a genuine Rembrandt. (Smith's 'Nollekens and his Times'

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First Work printed for Samuel Harding 1722.

The History of the Life & Reign of Queen Anne.

Illustrated with all the medals struck in this reign, with their Explanations; and other useful and Ornamental cuts. To which is added, an appendix, Containing several Authentick and Remarkable Papers; And annnual List of the most Eminent Persons who dy'd in this Reign, with characters of the most Conspicuous. By Mr. A. Boyer....

London :

printed by J. Roberts; and sold by William Taylor, in Pater-Noster-Row; William and John Innys, at the West End of St. Paul's Church-Yard; John Osborne, in Lombard street; Samuel Harding, and Abel Rocayrol, in St. Martin's-Lane, 1722.

Illustrated with engravings by van der Gucht

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First Publication 1723.

PROPHETICAL OBSERVATIONS OCCASION'D BY THE NEW COMET: AND BY OTHER SIGNS IN THE HEAVENS, AS WELL LATELY PAST, AS NOW APPROACHING, VIZ. THE LATE GREAT CONJUNCTION OF JUPITER, SATURN, AND MARS. THE TRANSIT OF MERCURY IN THE DISK OF THE SUN. THE NORTHERN PHOENOMENA. THE TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE SUN

Printed for Samuel Harding, at the Post-House in St. Martin's-Lane, and sold by J. Peele, at the Lock's-Head in Pater-Noster-Row, 1723.

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https://books.openbookpublishers.com/10.11647/obp.0247/ch2.xhtml

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Trade Card for Samuel Harding.

c. 1742.

British Museum.

https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_Heal-17-64

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An essay on design : including proposals for erecting a public academy to be supported by voluntary subscription (till a royal foundation can be obtain'd) for educating the British youth in drawing, and the several arts depending thereon).

With foreword by John Gwyn

1746.