14501940
15001600170018001900
Floruit: 1589–1620
floruit 1589 (A)—1620 (A); Male, married
Life Events
| Event |
Date |
Source
|
| Death |
- before 21 Aug 1620 |
McKerrow, R. B. &c. (1910)
|
Family Relationships
Livery Companies
| Company |
Source
|
| Stationers' Company |
|
Was Apprentice to Master(s): (1)
Had Apprentice(s): (6)
Addresses (2)
| Date |
Address |
Trade at Addr |
Source |
Comment
|
| 1609, (1609) |
Trinity Lane |
|
McKerrow, R.B. &c. (1910) |
- between Old Fish Street and Bow Lane
|
| 1620, (1620) |
Great Wood Street |
|
McKerrow, R.B. &c. (1910) |
|
Events (10)
Sources and References
| Original Sources |
Comments
|
| St.Co. Archive - Binding and Freedom records - extracted by Prof. J.A. Lavin |
|
SOURCES & TRANSCRIPTIONS
Transcriptions
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography - artcle by David McKitterick
S.T.C., (1991), vol.3, p.105
McKerrow, R.B. &c. (1910), pp.172-3
LEGATT or LEGATE (JOHN), printer in Cambridge and London, 1586-1620; Cambridge: West end of Great St. Mary's Church, and Regent Walk [Gray's Shops at West end of Great St. Mary’s]. London: (1) Trinity Lane, between Old Fish Street and Bow Lane, 1609; (2) Great Wood Street, 1620. John Legatt was, it is believed, a native of Hornchurch in Essex. From an Indenture enrolled on the Close Roll of the 33rd Eliz. (i.e., 1590-1) Bartholomew Legatt and William Legatt, hoth described as of Sutton in the parish of Hornchurch, sold lands in Essex to John Legatt, citizen and stationer of London. John Legatt was apprenticed to Christopher Barker { BARKER, Christopher (1529 - 1599) ‹ LBT 06871 › }, the Queen's printer, by whom he was presented for his freedom on April 11th, 1586 [Arber, ii. 696]. He was appointed printer to the University of Cambridge by Grace of November 2nd, 1588, in succession to Thomas Thomas, and on February 4th, 1588-9, he married Alice Speirs { SPEIRS, Alice (mar. LEGGET) ‹ LBT 03065 › }, by whom he had at least 12 children. He appears to have lived in a house at the West end of Great St. Mary's Church previously occupied by Thomas Bradshaw, whilst his printing was done in a house in the Regents' Walk a few yards away.
He was the first who used (from 1603 onward) the device with the words Alma Mater Cantabrigia and the motto Hinc lucem et pocula sacra. Towards the close of the sixteenth century there was a good deal of ill-feeling between the Cambridge stationers and the Company of Stationers in London, and in 1598 John Legatt joined several of the smaller, London booksellers in issuing a pirated edition of Sidney's Arcadia which had been printed in Edinburgh by Robert Waldegrave { WALGRAVE, Robert ( - 1604) ‹ LBT 07564 › }. From evidence given by one of his servants it appeared that Legatt had sold 20 copies to Cuthbert Burby { BURBY, Cuthbert ( - 1607) ‹ LBT 08823 › } and Richard Bankworth { BANKWORTH, Richard ( - 1613) ‹ LBT 06865 › }, both London Booksellers, and sold others in his shop at Cambridge [Library, April, 1900, pp. 195 et seq.]. In 1606 his former apprentice Cantrell Legge { LEGGE, Cantrell ( - 1625) ‹ LBT 07981 › } was also appointed University printer, and in 1609 Legatt moved to London, but still called himself "Printer to the University" and continued to use the Cambridge device. His right to this title is confirmed by an entry in an MS. account of the University written by John Scott in 1617, where his name appears, with those of Cantrell Legge and Thomas Brooke, as one of the three University printers [Bowes, Univ. Printers, p. 294]. In 1612 John Legatt is described as living in Trinity Lane, London, and in 1615 he is returned as having two presses [Arber, iii. 699]. He died before August 21st, 1620 [Arber, iv. 45].
MLT Note: - also at Cambridge
