George Palmer Putnam

George Palmer Putnam
George Palmer Putnam
Born	(1814-02-07)February 7, 1814 Brunswick, Maine, U.S.
Died	December 20, 1872(1872-12-20) (aged 58)
Nationality	American
Citizenship	United States of America
Occupation	publisher, author
Known for	Wiley & Putnam G. Putnam Broadway Putnam's Magazine
Spouse(s)	Victorine Haven
Children	11, including Mary Corinna Putnam (1842–1906) George Haven Putnam (1844–1930) John Bishop Putnam (1849–1915) Irving Putnam (1852–1931) Herbert Putnam (1861–1955)

George Palmer Putnam (February 7, 1814 – December 20, 1872) was an important American book publisher.

Putnam was born in Brunswick, Maine. On moving to New York City, Putnam was given his first job by Jonathan Leavitt, who subsequently published Putnam's first book. In 1838, George Palmer Putnam and John Wiley established the publishing house of Wiley & Putnam in New York City. In 1841, Putnam went to London, UK where he set up a branch office, the first American to ever do so. In 1848 he returned to New York where he dissolved the partnership with John Wiley and established G. Putnam Broadway, publishing a variety of works including quality illustrated books.

In 1852, with the assistance of George William Curtis and other partners, he founded Putnam's Magazine. It operated until 1856, resumed in 1868, and finally merged with Scribner's Monthly. His company was the official publisher to the 1853 New York World's Fair.

George Putnam published the books of many classic American authors including his close friend Washington Irving, William Cullen Bryant, James Fenimore Cooper, and Edgar Allan Poe. He served as secretary for the Publishers' Association for many years and was an advocate of the creation of International Copyright Law. During the American Civil War, he participated in the Loyal Publication Society of New York, and suspended his business for three years (1863–1866) to become the United States government's Collector of Internal Revenue in New York City.