Ogilby, John, 1600-1676
America
London: 1671
John Ogilby’s America (London, 1671) is a translation of Arnoldus Montanus’ Die nieuwe en onbekende Weereld. (Amsterdam, 1671), published without credit to Montanus. Ogilby did add material in his edition from other sources on the English colonies in America and added maps of Maryland, Jamaica, and Barbados. The general map of the Americas is also different from the Dutch work. Ogilby, however, was not alone in his plagiarism. In 1673, Olfert Dupper published a German translation listing himself as the author.
John Ogilby (1600-1676) is described by the Dictionary of National Biography as a “miscellaneous writer” of a good family. He apprenticed to a dance master and was soon reputed to be “one of the best masters in the profession.” He suffered a number of misfortunes in his lifetime, including being shipwrecked in his passage from Ireland while fleeing the outbreak of the Civil War in 1641 and losing his house in the Great Fire of London in 1666.
He translated, edited, and published many books, including several illustrated geographical works. These included America and ones on China, Japan, Africa, Asia, and Britain. His Book of Roads was published in many editions in the 17th and 18th centuries. The 1762 edition, revised by John Senex, is in Special Collections at the University of Washington.
America contains 122 beautiful engravings, including 50 double-page or folding plates and maps. Many of the plates are contemporary views of cities in the Americas. Six engraved portraits include ones of Columbus, Vesputius, and Magellan. Sixty-six plates are included in the text.
This splendid book was given to the Libraries in 1990 by Mr. and Mrs. Robert G. Ferris of Spokane, who also contributed to its restoration. The book was previously in the library of Mr. Ferris’ grandfather, Robert D. Sheppard, of Evanston, Illinois.