Franklin Nelson Doubleday

(8 January, 1862 - 30 January, 1934)

Franklin Nelson Doubleday was born January 8, 1862, in Brooklyn, Kings County, New York, the son of William Edwards Doubleday and Ellen Maria Dickinson Doubleday. His father was a journalist and Civil War correspondent, and the household emphasized writing, publishing, and public affairs. Franklin was educated at Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute and later attended Harvard College, where he studied literature and developed an interest in publishing, though he left before completing a degree.

Frank N. Doubleday by V. Floyd Campbell

After college, Doubleday worked in the publishing industry, gaining practical experience at Charles Scribner’s Sons. In 1897, he entered into a partnership with magazine publisher Samuel S. McClure to form Doubleday and McClure Company. The firm initially focused on publishing books by American authors and leveraged McClure’s magazine network for promotion and distribution. Among the early successes were works by writers such as Rudyard Kipling, Stephen Crane, and Theodore Roosevelt, which helped establish the company’s reputation and financial stability.

In 1900, Walter Hines Page joined the firm as a partner, and the company was reorganized as Doubleday, Page and Company. Under Doubleday’s leadership, the firm expanded rapidly, becoming one of the most influential publishing houses in the United States. He emphasized large print runs, national distribution, and close collaboration with authors, helping to modernize American book publishing. The company published fiction, nonfiction, and reference works and became known for both literary quality and commercial success.

The Memoirs of a Publisher — this is Doubleday’s own account of his business and publishing life.

Doubleday served as president of the company for many years and was closely involved in editorial direction and business strategy. In 1927, Doubleday, Page and Company merged with the George H. Doran Company to form Doubleday, Doran and Company. At the time of the merger, it was the largest publishing enterprise in the English-speaking world. Following his resignation as president, operational leadership increasingly passed to his son, Nelson Doubleday Sr., who continued to expand the business in the following decades.

Franklin Doubleday was married twice. His first marriage was to Neltje Blanchan DeGraff, a naturalist and author known for her popular books on nature and wildlife. She died in 1918. Later that same year, he married Florence Van Wyck Doubleday. He was the father of two children, Nelson Doubleday Sr., who became a leading figure in American publishing, and Dorothy Doubleday Babcock.

Franklin Nelson Doubleday died on January 30, 1934, in Coconut Grove, Miami-Dade County, Florida, at the age of seventy-two. He was buried at Locust Valley Cemetery in Locust Valley, Nassau County, New York.