The Biographical Dictionary of America/Anderson, John Jacob

ANDERSON, John Jacob, educator, was born in New York city, Sept. 30, 1821. He received his primary education at the New York public schools, and at Rutgers college. In 1845 he was appointed principal of one of the large public schools of New York city, and he held this position for upwards of twenty years, meanwhile having control of the evening schools in the city, and giving numerous lectures before educational bodies. It was while thus employed that he wrote his well-known series of school histories, which were literally a growth evolved out of his own experience as a teacher. His first volume — the "Introductory School History of the United States" — was not written for publication, but was arranged on the catechetical plan, copied by one pupil after another of the class he was fitting for the Free academy, and was used in manuscript. Mr. Anderson in this, his first book, was the pioneer in associating narrative with its geography. He was the first to insert in his books sectional maps covering every part of the story, and to recommend that these should be reproduced on blackboards, slates and paper, by the pupils. For his books exhibited at the International exposition in Paris in 1875, Dr. Anderson was awarded a medal, the only award made for school histories by the exhibition. The University of the city of New York in 1876 conferred upon him the degree of Ph.D. His publications include: "Pictorial School History of the United States" (1863); "Introductory School History of the United States" (1865); "Common School History of the United States"; "Grammar School History of the United States"; "A Manual of General History"; "A School History of England" (1870); "The Historical Reader" (1871); "The United States Reader" (1872); "A New Manual of General History" (1869); "A Pictorial School History"; "A School History of France"; "The Historical Reader" (1872); and "A School History of Greece."