RCL Benziger

Last updated
RCL Benziger
RCL Benziger.jpeg
Parent company Kendall Hunt
PredecessorBenzinger, RCL - Resources for Christian Living
Founded1792
Founder Joseph Charles Benziger
Country of origin United States
Headquarters location Cincinnati, Ohio
Publication typesBooks
Nonfiction topicsCatholicism
Official website www.rclbenziger.com

RCL Benziger is a Roman Catholic book-publishing house founded in 1792 by Joseph Charles Benziger in Einsiedeln, Switzerland. [1] It is currently based in Cincinnati, Ohio, and operates as a subsidiary of Kendall Hunt Publishing.

Contents

History

Benziger Brothers token. Benzigers Bros medal.jpg
Benziger Brothers token.

The company started as a Catholic religious publisher founded by Joseph Charles Benzinger in 1792. In 1833, Benziger's sons, Charles and Nicholas, succeeded their father under the company name of Charles and Nicholas Benziger Brothers. Two years later, in addition to their book-publishing business, the brothers began lithographing religious pictures, as well as coloring them by hand, before the introduction of chromolithography. [1]

Charles Benziger

Charles Benziger (b. 1799, d. 1873), a man with a good classical education, devoted himself especially to the literary end of the business. In 1840, the first Einsiedler Kalender volume was produced. The Pilgrim, a popular Catholic periodical established at the same time, lasted only ten years. Charles also took an active part in public life, and served as president of the Swiss canton of Schwyz. [1]

Nicholas Benziger

Nicholas Benziger home in New York Benziger House 345 Edgecombe Avenue from east.jpg
Nicholas Benziger home in New York
Benziger 345 Edgecomb plaque jeh.JPG

Nicholas Benziger (b. 1808, d. 1864), who took charge of the technical part of the business, proved himself a pioneer, introducing to the mountain village of Einsiedeln a series of improved trade methods from the great mercantile centers of Europe and the United States. Under his guidance, the work of bookbinding, which was formerly undertaken by the family at home, was systematized. In 1844, the old hand press was superseded by the first power press. Stereotyping was introduced in 1846, steel and copper printing in 1856 and electrotyping in 1858. [1]

End of 19th century

Upon the retirement of Charles and Nicholas Benziger in 1860, the business was continued by three of Charles' sons (Charles, Martin and J.N. Adelrich) and three of Nicholas' sons (Nicholas, Adelrich and Louis). Under this third generation, the different branches of the house were further developed, with chromolithography and other modern printing methods added. In 1867, the Alte und Neue Welt, the first illustrated popular Catholic German magazine on a large scale, was begun. A number of illustrated Catholic family books and a series of schoolbooks were produced, including a Bible history in 12 languages, together with prayer books by well-known authors. Between 1880 and 1895, a fourth generation took control of the business, and the firm name was changed to Benziger and Company. [1]

Expansion to the United States

Although Benziger Brothers had established offices in New York City in 1853, the company's development as a publishing house did not begin until 1860 when J.N. Adelrich Benziger and Louis Benziger took charge. In 1860, offices were opened in Cincinnati and in 1887, one in Chicago. The publishing of English Catholic books was vigorously undertaken, and the company's catalog covered the field of devotional, educational and juvenile literature, as well as works of a theological theme. Benziger was not only a publishing house but a liturgical-supply factory. [2] [3] The American firm of Benziger Brothers is now independent of the Swiss house. The Holy See conferred on the firm the title "Printers to the Holy Apostolic See" in 1867. [1]

20th and 21st century

United States

In 1968, Benziger's American business was acquired by Crowell-Collier Macmillan (later to become Macmillan, Inc.), and the following year, its headquarters were moved to California. In 1971, it was merged with three other companies: Bruce Publishing, founded in Milwaukee in the 1890s, P. J. Kenedy & Sons of New York (excluding the Official Catholic Directory) and Glencoe Press, which began in Beverly Hills in 1966. [4] In July 2007, the Benziger name and product line were purchased from McGraw-Hill (which had acquired Macmillan's educational division) by CFM Publishing and merged with Texas-based Catholic publisher RCL (Resources for Christian Living), founded in 1964 by Richard C. Leach, to form RCL Benziger. [5] The new company is now headquartered in Cincinnati as it was in the 19th century. In 2016, RCL Benziger was sold to Kendall Hunt Publishing. [6]

Europe

Benziger's Swiss operation was also growing at the end of the 19th century. At the peak of its expansion in the 1890s, Benziger published books and magazines in 20 languages [7] and had more than 1,000 employees in Switzerland alone, making it one of the largest Swiss companies at the time. [8]

The company opened locations in Cologne in 1884 and Strasbourg in 1912. A bookstore in Waldshut was added as early as 1887, but was sold in 1936 [9] and was closed in 2019. [10] The First World War brought major setbacks, as the company was separated from its main sales areas. The Benziger family withdrew from the active publishing business. Later, the rise of National Socialism had a lasting effect on sales of the traditionally Catholic-oriented program.

After the Second World War, the theological program was supplemented by a wide range of books for children and young people. [7] Some of the best-known authors included:

In 1986, the publishing house was sold to the Rheinpfalz Group in Ludwigshafen, [11] and the children's book division was bought by Arena Publishing in Würzburg. [12] After a creeping decline, Benziger's Swiss operation was taken over by Patmos Publishing in 1994. In 2003, publishing activities under the Benziger name were discontinued. In 1985, Benziger spun off its publishing distribution. Since 2015, it has been operating under the name Balmer Bücherdienst AG and is the second-largest intermediate book-trade company in Switzerland. [13] In 1986, the printing house in Einsiedeln was separated from the publishing house to become an independent stock corporation like the publishing house. However, without the publishing house, the company could no longer bring in sufficient revenue and was discontinued in 1995. [14] The Einsiedeln bookstore founded in 1802 was sold in 1987, but it still exists under its old name. [15]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chromolithography</span> Method for making multi-colour prints

Chromolithography is a method for making multi-colour prints. This type of colour printing stemmed from the process of lithography, and includes all types of lithography that are printed in colour. When chromolithography is used to reproduce photographs, the term photochrome is frequently used. Lithographers sought to find a way to print on flat surfaces with the use of chemicals instead of raised relief or recessed intaglio techniques.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Einsiedeln Abbey</span> Benedictine monastery in Switzerland

Einsiedeln Abbey is a Roman Catholic monastery administered by the Benedictine Order in the village of Einsiedeln, Switzerland. The abbey is dedicated to Our Lady of the Hermits, in recognition of Meinrad of Einsiedeln, a hermit Catholic saint. The monastery is not under the jurisdiction of a diocese or a bishop because it is a territorial abbey.

<i>The Cincinnati Enquirer</i> Daily newspaper in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States

The Cincinnati Enquirer is a morning daily newspaper published by Gannett in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. First published in 1841, the Enquirer is the last remaining daily newspaper in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, although the daily Journal-News competes with the Enquirer in the northern suburbs. The Enquirer has the highest circulation of any print publication in the Cincinnati metropolitan area. A daily local edition for Northern Kentucky is published as The Kentucky Enquirer.

Macmillan Publishers is a British publishing company traditionally considered to be one of the 'Big Five' English language publishers. Founded in London in 1843 by Scottish brothers Daniel and Alexander MacMillan, the firm would soon establish itself as a leading publisher in Britain. It published two of the best-known works of Victorian era children's literature, Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book (1894).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Scribner's Sons</span> American publisher

Charles Scribner's Sons, or simply Scribner's or Scribner, is an American publisher based in New York City, known for publishing American authors including Henry James, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Kurt Vonnegut, Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Stephen King, Robert A. Heinlein, Thomas Wolfe, George Santayana, John Clellon Holmes, Don DeLillo, and Edith Wharton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nicholas of Flüe</span>

Nicholas of Flüe was a Swiss hermit and ascetic who is the patron saint of Switzerland. He is sometimes invoked as Brother Klaus. A farmer, military leader, member of the assembly, councillor, judge and mystic, he was respected as a man of complete moral integrity. He is known for having fasted for over twenty years. Brother Klaus's counsel to the Diet of Stans (1481) helped prevent war between the Swiss cantons.

Einsiedeln is a municipality and district in the canton of Schwyz in Switzerland known for its monastery, the Benedictine Einsiedeln Abbey, established in the 10th century.

Joseph Charles Benziger (1762–1841) was the founder of RCL Benziger, a Catholic publishing house, and president of Feldkirch District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Joseph Frederick Otto Zardetti</span>

John Joseph Frederick Otto Zardetti was a Swiss prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He first served as the first bishop of the new Diocese of Saint Cloud in Minnesota in the United States from 1889 to 1894. Zardetti then served as Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Bucharest in what is today Romania from 1894 to 1895. After resigning as archbishop, Zardetti briefly, but influentially served in the Roman Curia with the title of titular archbishop of Mocissus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Schwarzenbach</span>

James Eduard Schwarzenbach was a right-wing Swiss politician and publicist. In the 1970s he was head of the short-lived Republican Movement. He also was publisher of fascist, völkisch, and antisemitic literature as the owner of Thomas-Verlag. He served in the National Council from 12 December 1967 to 28 February 1979, representing the Canton of Zürich.

Cassell & Co is a British book publishing house, founded in 1848 by John Cassell (1817–1865), which became in the 1890s an international publishing group company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fahr Convent</span>

Fahr Convent, is a Benedictine convent located in the Swiss municipality of Unterengstringen in the canton of Zürich. Located in different cantons, Einsiedeln Abbey and Fahr Convent form a double monastery, overseen by the male Abbot of Einsiedeln, no converse arrangement appears to be available for the Abbess of Fahr. Fahr and Einsiedeln may be one of the last of such arrangements to survive.

Francis Ernest Charles Gigot was a French Catholic priest and Sulpician who published many religious books.

New Mountain Learning, LLC was a privately held publishing company founded in 2012 and headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota. The company published educational textbooks and software, including supplements and assessment tools for PreK-12, post-secondary, workforce development, and religious education fields.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walter Verlag</span> Swiss publishing house

Walter Verlag was a publishing house founded in 1916 in Olten, Switzerland. In 1994, it was taken over by the Patmos publishing house, and later used again under the label of the Patmos group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M. Maryan</span> French writer (1847–1927)

M. Maryan was the pseudonym used by Marie Rosalie Virginie Cadiou (1847-1927), a French novelist born in Brest who worked in Paris. She was a prolific author who wrote for young female readers.

Kendall Hunt is an independent educational publishing house founded in 1944 as William C. Brown Publishing. The company is based in Dubuque, Iowa, and is still owned by the Brown family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ignatius Conrad</span>

Ignatius Conrad was a Benedictine monk, a Swiss missionary, and the first Abbot of Subiaco Abbey in Arkansas, which was named as an abbey in 1891. He served from 1892 to 1925. Fr Ignatius Conrad initially worked with the German Catholic communities in the south-western region of the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aloysius Maria Benziger</span> Swiss Catholic bishop

Aloysius Maria Benziger was a Swiss Catholic bishop, pioneer missionary, and Carmelite Father who lived from 1864 to 1942. He served as the Bishop of Quilon, Titular Bishop of Tabae, and Titular Archbishop of Antinoë.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">J.N. Adelrich Benziger</span> Swiss businessman, publisher and diplomat

Joseph Nicholas Adelrich Benziger abbreviated as J.N. Adelrich Benziger was a Swiss businessman, publisher and diplomat who served as Consul General of Switzerland to Cincinnati, Ohio from 1864 to 1866. Benziger led the U.S. subsidiaries of RCL Benziger since 1857.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Joseph Charles Benzinger". Newadvent.org. Retrieved 2014-05-01.
  2. "IonaScribe: Benziger Brothers". Archived from the original on March 30, 2012. Retrieved August 11, 2011.
  3. "Catalogue of religious articles, lithographs and engravings .. : Benziger brothers. [from old catalog] : Free Download & Streaming : Internet Archive". New York, Cincinnati, O., Benziger brothers. 2001-03-10. Retrieved 2014-05-01.
  4. Blau, Eleanor (1971-08-18). "Lean Days Beset Catholic Publishers". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2019-12-22.
  5. "Richard Leach". Biola University. Retrieved 2021-05-13.
  6. "Kendall Hunt Completes Acquisition of RCL Benziger from The Wicks Group". New Mountain Learning. 2016-08-17. Retrieved 2017-12-26.
  7. 1 2 Martina Läubli: Das Bücherimperium in Einsiedeln. in: Neue Zürcher Zeitung, 3 November 2017, auch online at nzz.ch.
  8. Heinz Nauer: "Pious industry": The publishing house Benziger in Einsiedeln 1760–1960. Retrieved 11 February 2016.
  9. Expansion Deutschland http://www.buchfleck.de/buchhgesch.htm
  10. https://www.suedkurier.de/region/hochrhein/waldshut-tiengen/Die-Waldshuter-St-Marienbuchhandlung-schliesst-nach-132-Jahren-und-die-Betreiber-von-Nagelstudios-stehen-bereits-Schlange;art372623,10129294 Die Waldshuter St. Marienbuchhandlung schließt nach 132 Jahren. in: Südkurier
  11. Schaub-Skandal http://www.nickscafe.de/randzone/art/art050124a.htm at the Wayback Machine (archived February 10, 2007)
  12. "SLA-BENZ Benziger Verlag: Archiv Benziger Verlag, Zürich, 1948-1991 (Bestand)". HelveticArchives. Retrieved 2021-05-13.
  13. Buchauslieferung http://www.buecherdienst.ch/index.php?option=articles&task=viewarticle&artid=7&Itemid=3
  14. Schweizer Handelsamtsblatt.
  15. Buchhandlung Benziger http://www.benziger.ch/homepage.php?start=wir