publishing books at Oxford from 1620 to 1640, notably the first and second editions of Burton's Anatomy of Melancholy, 1621 and 1624, but between 1640 and 1650 he left Oxford and settled in London, where he joined Lodowick Lloyd, q.v., in several ventures. His death took place about 1661, and he was succeeded by his widow, who continued the business for several years. [Madan's Early Oxford Press, pp. 278, etc.]
CRIPPS (Mrs.), bookseller in London; First shop in Pope's-Head-Alley, 1661–64. Widow of Henry Cripps. The initials S.C. found in the imprint to C. Trenchfield's Historical Contemplations, 1664, may refer to her.
CROFT, or CROFTS (EDWARD), bookseller in London; Against St. Botolph's Church, Little Britain, 1666–67. His name occurs in the Hearth Tax Roll for the half-year ending Lady Day, 1666, as having premises in Little Britain. [P.R.O. Lay Subsidy, 25232.] His death is recorded in Smyth's Obituary (p. 77), under date December 29th, 16678: "Edw. Croft bookseller against St. Buttolph's Church in Little Brittain died hora 5 ante merid.: his relict, remarried since to Mr. Blagrave, an honest bookseller, who live happily in her house in Little Brittain."
CROFTS (ROBERT,) bookseller in London, (1) Crown in Chancery Lane next the Rowles; (2) Crown in Chancery Lane under Serjeants Inne, 1657–64. Dealt largely in plays and broadsides. [See Hazlitt, H. 163, H. 39, H. 79, iv. 160.]
CROMBIE (ROBERT), bookseller in Edinburgh, 1645. Probably the Robert Crumby, "servand, keeper of his buith," named in 1631 in the inventory of James Cathkin. Apprentice, Robert Brown, q.v. Died August or September, 1645. [H. G. Aldis, List of books printed in Scotland before 1700, p. 112.]
CROOKE (ANDREW), bookseller in London; Green Dragon in St. Paul's Churchyard, 1630-74. Took up his freedom March 26th, 1629. [Arber, iii. 686], and became one of the leading publishers of his day. He dealt largely in plays, in the publication of which he was associated with G. Bedell and W. Cooke, and he published the first authorised edition of Sir T. Browne's Religio Medici. A list of 17 plays by Beaumont and Fletcher sold by him is given at the end of the play Wit without Money,
