John Fowler Trow

John Fowler Trow (30 January 1810 Andover, Massachusetts – 8 August 1886 Orange, New Jersey) was a printer and publisher in New York City.

Portrait of J.F. Trow

Life

Born in Andover, Massachusetts, he moved to New York in 1833. He began publishing city directories in 1848. His business eventually became "John F. Trow & Son," the son being John Fowler Trow, Jr. (1850–1912). The publisher then became "John F. Trow & Co."[1][2] Employees included Peter C. Baker.[3] After Trow's death in 1886, Trow's Directory continued annually for some years.[4]

Trow's Directory

• Henry Wilson, ed. (1852). Directory of the City of New York. New York: John F. Trow. hdl:2027/chi.27275303.
• Trow's New York City Directory. 1857.
  • 1859 ed.
  • 1865 ed.
  • 1872 ed.
• Wilson's New York City Copartnership Directory. New York: John F. Trow. 1864.
• Trow's Business Directory of Manhattan and Bronx. 1898.
• Trow's Business Directory of the Borough of Queens. NY. 1899.
• Trow's Business and Residential Directory of the Borough of Richmond, City of New York. NY: Trow Directory, Printing & Bookbinding Co. 1899.
• Trow's General Directory of the Boroughs of Manhattan and Bronx. NY: Trow Directory, Printing & Bookbinding Co. 1909.
• R.L. Polk & Co.'s 1918-19 Trow New York Copartnership and Corporation Directory, Boroughs of Manhattan and Bronx. NY: R.L. Polk & Company. 1919.

Family (descendants)

John F. Trow was the grandfather of organist Ernest Trow Carter (1866–1953). He was a great-great grandfather of American essayist, novelist, playwright, and media critic George William Swift Trow, Jr. (1943–2006).

References

1. "Obituary: John F. Trow", American Bookmaker, New York: Howard Lockwood, 3, p. 89, September 1886, hdl:2027/mdp.39015086753038
2. Henry W. Herrick (1901), "John Fowler Trow", Manchester Historic Association Collections, Manchester, New Hampshire
3. Fifty Years Among Authors, Books and Publishers, by James Cephas Derby (1818–1892), G.W. Carleton & Co. (George Washington Carleton; 1832–1901) (1884), pps. 300, 656, 658–659; OCLC 681333841, 894918439, 1031787608
4. The Development and Growth of City Directories, by A.V. Williams, The Williams Directory Co. Print (1913), p. 56

Further reading

• New York City Directories
• "Check List of Directories of the City of New York", Bulletin of the New York Public Library, 5, 1901, hdl:2027/nyp.33433081923769
• Philip Sutton (2012), "Direct Me NYC 1786: A History of City Directories in the United States and New York City", NYPL Blogs, New York Public Library

External links

• Works by or about John Fowler Trow at Internet Archive
• WorldCat. Trow, John Fowler 1810-1886
• Hathi Trust. Trow's Directory of New York City, various dates
• Open Library. Trow's Directory of New York City, various dates