The Lamp of Learning: Two Centuries of Publishing at Taylor & Francis

Originally published in 1998, when for two centuries Taylor & Francis had been committed to the publication of scholarly information. Ever since the launching of the Philosophical Magazine in 1798, the publishing company run by Richard Taylor and later by William Francis has specialised in the printing and publishing of scientific periodicals and books. Both founders wrote original scientific papers, and through close involvement with the scientific societies of London, and dedication to the business of scientific communication, both nationally and internationally, developed a high reputation for the quality of their publications.

With the proliferation of periodicals and information generated by learned societies at the turn of the twentieth century, Taylor & Francis also became pioneers in the field of abstracting journals. This pioneering spirit remained at the time with the company at the forefront of the development of on-line electronic journals.

Taylor & Francis publishes books and periodicals in the fields of science, engineering, social science and humanities yet continues to publish many of the early journals, including the Philosophical Magazine, whose current aims have evolved to meet the needs of modern physicists.

The company had grown dramatically in the previous 15 years, being transformed from a small family business into a thriving international company with publishing offices in the UK and the USA (now in 14 countries worldwide), yet it was still one in which leading scientists were shareholders and directors.

The story of the development of Taylor & Francis in this book is much more than an isolated account of one small company – it throws light on the whole process of scientific communication during the previous 200 years. In this bicentenary edition the story of the company’s growth into a significant academic publishing player was brought right up to date within the context of late twentieth century publishing innovation and expansion. Today T&F continues to go from strength to strength.