Thomas Moore Johnson Collection of Philosophy

History

Thomas Moore Johnson (1851-1919) was an attorney, collector, and student of philosophy in Osceola, Missouri. Though his formal training in philosophy was sparse, his consummate philosophical interests led him to become a foremost lay authority on Plato and the Neoplatonists. He established two journals devoted to Platonic philosophy The Platonist and Bibliotheca Platonica, and translated Neoplatonist works such as Iamblichus' Exhortation to the Study of Philosophy (1907), Proclus' Metaphysical Elements (1909) and Opuscula Platonia (1908).

Johnson began collecting Greek texts while a student at the University of Notre Dame and his library eventually grew to about 8,000 volumes. A portion of his library was presented to the University of Missouri-Columbia Libraries in 1947 by his son, Franklin P. Johnson.

Scope

"The collection spans the centuries from the ancient Greeks to the nineteenth century philosophers, but the emphasis is on the classical authors, augmented by modern philosophy and criticism. The medieval Christian philosophers are also represented. Since the collector was a Platonist, it is expected that the collection of works of Plato and the critical works would be large.

"The oldest imprint is 1508 and there are several hundred volumes published in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries" (The Thomas Moore Johnson Collection, page 3).

Holdings: 1,317 volumes

Access

Most titles are cataloged and available through MERLIN, the University's online catalog.

A guide to the collection, The Thomas Moore Johnson Collection, Columbia, University of Missouri, 1949 is available. The collection does not circulate. Photocopying is permitted subject to the condition of the volumes. The collection must be used in Special Collections' Reading Room during service hours or by appointment.