Nelson Doubleday

Nelson Doubleday (June 16, 1889 – January 11, 1949) was a U.S. book publisher and president of Doubleday Company from 1922-1946. His father Frank N. Doubleday had founded the business. His son Nelson Doubleday, Jr. followed him into it, taking part in expansion and serving as president from 1978-1986.

Nelson Doubleday was born in Brooklyn, New York to Frank Nelson Doubleday (the first Doubleday ancestor came to Boston in the early 1600s from England) (the name Doubleday is English -possibly of Norman origin originally DuBaldy ) and Neltje Blanchan. His older brother Felix Doty was adopted, and he had a younger sister Dorothy. In the city, the children attended a private Friends School run by Quakers. The family moved out to a large estate in Locust Valley on Long Island, called "Effendi" after their father's nickname given to him by his friend, the British author Rudyard Kipling. The author wrote his Just So Stories after the boy Nelson asked him to publish a book of animal stories.

Nelson grew up in the world of book publishing, as his father had founded the Doubleday company. His mother wrote several books about gardening and birds, which were considered notable for their combination of scientific content and lyrical expression.

Nelson later studied at Dr. Holbrook's Military School in Ossining, New York. He attended two years of New York University before joining his father in business, which he found more interesting. Even as a youth, he had creative solutions to business issues, for instance, suggesting selling dated magazines at a discount and thereby gaining some revenue from them.

Doubleday established his own business in 1910 and used the profits to publish books under his own imprint (now known as xxx). After serving in World War I, he joined his father's firm, Doubleday, Page and Company, as a junior partner.

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