Charles H. Kerr

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For other people named Charles Kerr, see Charles Kerr (disambiguation).
Charles H. Kerr
Photograph of a middle-aged man with a beard and moustache, wearing a coat and tie. The signature "Charles H. Kerr" appears beneath the photo.
Publisher Charles H. Kerr (circa 1895)
Born(1860-04-23)April 23, 1860
DiedJune 1, 1944(1944-06-01) (aged 84)
NationalityAmerican
OccupationPublisher, editor, writer
Known forCharles H. Kerr Publishing Company



Charles Hope Kerr (April 23, 1860 – June 1, 1944),[1] a son of abolitionists, was a vegetarian and Unitarian in 1886 when he established Charles H. Kerr & Co. in Chicago. His publishing career is noted for his views' leftward progression toward socialism and support for the Industrial Workers of the World.

Biography[]

Early life[]

Charles' father, Alexander Kerr was born in Fetterangus, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. He was the son of George and Helen Legge Kerr. When he was about seven the family emigrated first to Canada, and then three years later in 1838 to Illinois, in the United States of America.[citation needed]

Career[]

Kerr started his career at a Unitarian publisher and joined the staff of the Unity magazine in the mid-1880s. To support the magazine, he eventually established his own publishing house Charles H. Kerr & Co. in 1893. Influenced by the US People's Party, Kerr began to publish more political works on topics like land reform, including a new monthly magazine New Occasions.

In January 1900, Algie Martin Simons was hired by Kerr to launch a new, more explicitly socialist magazine, what would become the International Socialist Review. Over the years, Kerr's company became a leading publisher of socialist, communist, anarchist, and Wobbly works.[2]​ In 1908, Kerr fired Simons and assumed responsibility for the International Socialist Review when it was a major left-wing voice within the Socialist Party of America.

Industrial Socialism by Bill Haywood, published by Charles Kerr in 1911

Kerr was noted for his translation from the French of the radical workers' anthem, "The Internationale;" his version became the English words sung in the United States (although a different, anonymous English translation is sung in Britain and Ireland).[citation needed] Kerr's version was widely circulated in the Little Red Songbook of the Industrial Workers of the World.[citation needed]

Kerr was active in partisan politics as well. He was on the National Campaign Committee of the Social Democratic Party of America and later the Socialist Party of America. He was on the executive committee of the Socialist Party of Chicago, including a brief stint as treasurer. He was secretary of the Socialist Party of Illinois in 1902.[3]

Works[]

Articles:

  • "What Socialism Is," International Socialist Review, (1917)[4]

Compilations:

  • Unity songs resung (1884)[5]

Translations:

  • The right to be lazy, and other studies (1907)[6]

References[]

  1. ^ Charles H. Kerr & Co., Encyclopedia of Chicago
  2. ^ Ruff, Allen (2011). We called each other comrade : Charles H. Kerr & Company, radical publishers. Oakland, CA: PM Press. ISBN 9781604864267.
  3. ^ We Called Each Other Comrade: Charles H. Kerr & Company, Radical Publishers. PM Press. 2011-07-01. pp. 21–. ISBN 9781604865721.
  4. ^ Kerr, Charles H. (October 1917). "What Socialism Is". International Socialist Review: 197–200.
  5. ^ Charles H. Kerr, ed. (1885). Unity songs resung. Colegrove book company. LCCN 34040195.
  6. ^ Lafargue, Paul (1907). The right to be lazy, and other studies. Translated by Charles H. Kerr. C. H. Kerr & Company. LCCN 07023081.

Bibliography[]

External links[]

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