Three Thousand Test Examples in Arithmetic by Joseph Ray

Object Details

Ray, Joseph

Description

Three Thousand Test Examples in Arithmetic is part of Ray's Series of Mathematics. It contains thousands of practical problems as an aid for teachers. It is a companion to Ray's Practical Arithmetic. The exercises are arranged in the same order and logic as the earlier work. As the Preface states: "...especial pains have been taken to insert no example which pupils of average capacity cannot master by their own unaided skill and industry." The brown front cover contains an illustration of four children with their teacher in a classroom. The back cover contains an ad for McGuffey's Revised Speller. Pages 126-136 contain answers to problems written in pencil. This 1881 textbook is 136 pages in length.

Joseph Ray (1807-1855) was a trailblazing American author of mathematics textbooks. He was professor of Mathematics at the Woodward Institution in Cincinnati, Ohio. His series first appeared in the 1830s and was enormously successful and influential well into the 20th Century. Ray's became the most widely used math books in the United States. “Previous to 1800, arithmetic as such received precious little attention. Educators believed it had no cultural and little actual educational value. … Ray's texts, on the other hand, were practical, and dealt with buying and selling such articles as sugar, tea, coffee, bacon, butter, and beer. The truth is, he revolutionized the teaching of mathematics by making it interesting.” (R. Hughes, West Virginia Review, February 1932, West Virginia Archives and History).

Publisher Van Antwerp, Bragg & Co. was incorporated in 1877 and based in Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1890, the American Book Company purchased all of the copyrights and plates formerly owned by Van Antwerp, Bragg & Co.

Credit Line

Gift of Dr. Richard Lodish American School Collection

1881

ID Number

2017.3049.87

nonaccession number

2017.3049

catalog number

2017.3049.87

Object Name

book

Physical Description

paper (overall material)

ink (overall material)

Measurements

overall: 6 1/2 in x 4 1/2 in x 1/4 in; 16.51 cm x 11.43 cm x .635 cm

place made

United States: Ohio, Cincinnati

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Home and Community Life: Education

National Museum of American History

Record ID

nmah_1965722

Metadata Usage (text)

CC0

GUID (Link to Original Record)

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746b4-ad5b-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa