John Wallis (publisher)

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John Wallis (publisher, died 1818) was a prolific English London-based bookseller, cartographer, and multi-category publisher active in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, distinct from the far better documented 17th-century mathematician of the identical name. He operated his family business alongside his two sons, John Wallis Jr. and Edward Wallis, and ranked among the most productive publishers of educational board games in Georgian-era Britain, alongside selling maps, prints, music and popular reading materials.

Key moments

Founded his multi-function publishing and retail business in London, offering a wide catalog of products ranging from cartographic charts to board games
1800Launched the landmark 10-volume 'Book-Case of Knowledge' educational series targeted at young audiences, with promotional adverts run in The Times newspaper
1818Passed away, with his two sons continuing the family publishing operation after his death

Common conflation with his famous namesake

A large volume of general reference content incorrectly mixes the biography of this publisher with the 1616–1703 mathematician John Wallis, a leading contributor to the development of calculus who worked nearly a full century earlier. The publisher had no direct connection to that earlier academic line of work, and operated in a separate, mass-market popular media context.

Pioneering role in edutainment history

Wallis and his family were early pioneers of the commercial educational play market for children that expanded rapidly across the 19th century. Their board game releases paired fun gameplay mechanics with embedded lessons in geography, history and general knowledge, creating a template that later generations of educational toy producers would follow for over two centuries.

Modern archival and collectible value

Surviving original copies of Wallis's full product catalog, including complete sets of his Book-Case of Knowledge series, are preserved in institutional collections such as Cambridge University Library and the Google Arts & Culture archive. Rare intact examples of his board games and 1800s educational publications regularly achieve high sale values at antiquarian book and collectibles auctions today.

John Wallis (died 1818) was an English board game publisher, bookseller, map/chart seller, print seller, music seller, and cartographer. With his sons John Wallis Jr. and Edward Wallis, he was one of the most prolific publishers of board games of the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

Wallis's company occupied a number of sites in London, England including:

16 Ludgate Street (under the name "Map Warehouse") from 1775.
13 Warwick Square (under the name "Instructive Toy Warehouse") from 1805.
42 Skinner Street, Snow Hill – this address was mainly used by Edward Wallis when working alone or when working with his father, in those cases publishing as "Wallis and Son" or "John & Edward Wallis".
188 The Strand – this address being used solely by John Wallis Jr.

Publications

(with Elizabeth Newbery) The New Game of Human Life, 1790[1]