A Dictionary of the Booksellers and Printers who Were at Work in England, Scotland and Ireland from 1641 to 1667/Beale (John)
BEALE (JOHN), printer in London; (?) Fetter Lane [the printing house of Robert Robinson], 1612–41. This printing house belonged from 1587-97 to Robert Robinson. After his death his widow married Richard Braddock, who continued the business till 1609, when it was bought by Thomas Haviland and William Hall. Two or three years later it was sold by Hall to John Beale, who took into partnership for a short time Thomas Brudenell. Sir John Lambe, from whose notes on the London printing houses this notice is compiled , says; "Master John Beale succeeded his partner Master William Hall about 15 yeares since (i.e., 1620), never admitted (of great estate but a very contentious person) he tooke 50li to furnish ye pore with bread and doth not do it. He bought Hall [out] and took Thomas Brudenell to be his partner for £140, which Brudenell had much a doe to recover." [Arber, iii. 699–700.] Beale was a relation by marriage to Humphrey Robinson, q.v., [Excheq. K. R. Bills and Answers, Lond. and Midd., 34.] Towards the close of his life he was afflicted with blindness, but appears to have still carried on business with S. Buckly, i.e., Stephen Bulkley, q.v., afterwards the Royalist printer, at York and elsewhere, for their names appear together in the imprint to Lewis de Gand's Sol Britannicus, 1641, 8°. [b.m. 1137, a. 13]. John Beale died on September 17th, 1643, and on March 16th, 16489, his copies were transferred to Humphrey Robinson. [Stationers' Registers, Liber F.] He printed some important works, including Speed's Theatre, 1611; Bacon's Essays, 1612 and 1639; Record's Ground of Arts, 1618; an edition of Cicero, 1628; and B. Jonson's Bartholomew Fayre, 1631.