From ten cent specials for Dutch farmers in 1910 to over 1000 titles in print currently, the William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company of Grand Rapids, Michigan, has firmly held to the motto established by its founder William B. Eerdmans, Sr.: “The finest in religious literature.”
The son of a Dutch textile manufacturer, Eerdmans immigrated to Grand Rapids from the Netherlands in 1902, and began peddling books to support himself while attending Calvin Theological Seminary. In 1911 Eerdmans quit the seminary, convinced that he would be “a misfit in the ministry,” and on August 16, 1911, he and Brant Sevensma formed the Eerdmans-Sevensma Company, a dealership specializing in theological textbooks.
By 1915 Eerdmans was sole owner of the company, then renamed the William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. Many of Eerdmans earliest books were classic theological works by European scholars, and the initial volumes were printed in the Dutch language.
The company distinguished itself in the early years with its numerous volumes on and about John Calvin, including a new printing of the 50-volume “Commentary of John Calvin” published at a cost of $300,000. Calvin’s Institutes are still to be found on Eerdmans’ list as well as a number of books about John Calvin.
Eerdmans’ reputation gradually spread through philanthropic book awards, through generous financial backing of Christian organizations, and through William Eerdmans’ propensity for publishing only those books which lived up to his standards of excellence.