# John Hotten

## Biography

John Camden Hotten, born John William Hotten in London in 1832, became a notable publisher and author. Apprenticed to a bookseller at fourteen, he later spent several years in America before returning to London in 1856 to establish his own bookselling and publishing firm on Piccadilly. Hotten was instrumental in introducing many American authors, including James Russell Lowell, Artemus Ward, and Bret Harte, to British audiences, though he was known for pirating some works. He also gained notoriety for taking on controversial projects, notably publishing Algernon Charles Swinburne's "Poems and Ballads" after its initial withdrawal due to obscenity charges, and an expurgated edition of Walt Whitman's "Leaves of Grass." Hotten was also an author, compiling works such as "A Dictionary of Modern Slang, Cant, and Vulgar Words" (1859) and "The History of Signboards," as well as writing biographies of Thackeray and Dickens. He died in 1873, and his publishing business was subsequently acquired by Chatto & Windus.

## Books

- [The Slang Dictionary: Etymological, Historical and Andecdotal](https://samolit.com/books/96700)