A Dictionary of the Booksellers and Printers who Were at Work in England, Scotland and Ireland from 1641 to 1667/Kirkman (Francis)
KIRKMAN (FRANCIS), bookseller in London, (1) John Fletcher's Head, over against the Angel-Inn, on the back side of St. Clements, without Temple Bar, 1661-2; (2) Princes Arms, Chancery Lane, 1662, 1666-8 (?); (3) Under St. Ethelborough's Church in Bishopsgate Street, 1669; (4) Ship, Thames Street; over against the Custom House, 1671; (5) Over against the Robin Hood, Fenchurch Street, near Aldgate, 1674; (6) Next door to the Princes Arms, St. Paul's Churchyard, 1678. 1657-78. Francis Kirkman was the eldest son of Francis Kirkman, citizen and blacksmith of London. In the "Preface to the Reader," in the Second Part of the English Rogue, printed in 1668, he gives some interesting particulars of his life. He was first apprenticed to a scrivener, but in 1656 set up as a bookseller, but "having knaves to deal with" he abandoned bookselling and confined himself to his business as a scrivener. He then lived in the East of London, possibly in Ratcliff, where his father was then living. After the Restoration he moved into the West End, probably to the house known as the John Fletcher's Head, and again set up as a scrivener and bookseller. From his boyhood he had been a collector of plays, and had written in 1657 a dedicatory epistle to an edition of Marlowe's Lust's Dominion. Kirkman was now drawn into the printing of play-books, of which, however, he declares he only printed three, which were his own copies, but his partners (i.e., Nathaniel Brooke, of the Angel in Cornhill, Thomas Johnson, of the Golden Key in St. Paul's Churchyard, and Henry Marsh, of the Princes Arms in Chancery Lane, with whom he was then in business) printed the best plays then extant, though they were other men's copies. The owner of these copyrights issued a warrant, and one of Kirkman's partners, in order to avoid trouble, sold Kirkman his share, and a day or two afterwards sent the searchers to his house where they seized 1,400 play-books. At that time owing to a family bereavement, the death of his father, which took place between August, 1661, and May, 1662, he was unable to attend to business and never recovered any of the books. Being now left in good circumstances, Kirkman decided to give up business, and was induced to trust the partner who had before deceived him with the sale of his stock, but could never get any considerable return for his books. This person, who was undoubtedly Henry Marsh, died of the plague in 1665 considerably indebted to Kirkman, who, in order to recover his money, secured the estate. This accounts for the second imprint of the Princes Arms in Chancery Lane, where once more in 1666 Kirkman set up in business as a bookseller. In 1661 he had printed a catalogue of all the English plays then printed, 690 in number, and this he now issued again, augmented to 806 items. Kirkman was accused by his contemporaries of asking exorbitant prices for his plays and issuing corrupt texts, but Mr. Greg finds no confirmation of this. His name appears for the last time in the Term Catalogue of Easter, 1678. [W. W. Greg, List of English Plays; D.N.B.; Arber, Term Catalogue, i. 310, 554.]