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David McKay Publications was a comic book publisher that published some of the Ace Comics (1937 series), Blondie Comics, Dick Tracy, Mandrake the Magician (1938) and several others.

David McKay born in Dysart Scotland, June 24 1860. At the age of 11 came to the United States with his parents. At the age of 13 began working for J.B. Lippincott & Co. learning the bookselling trade. By the age of 21 he was placed in charge of the miscellaneous catalog of books by publisher Rees Welsh. One year latter, upon hearing McKay had been offered a position with a rival publisher, Rees Welsh asked McKay take the helm, offering to sell the entire publishing firm to him. In September 1882 with $500.00 of his own money and $2,500.00 in borrowed money and notes David McKay began his own publishing company on South 9th Street in Philadelphia.

McKay’s notoriety as a publisher actually began while still working for Rees Welsh & Co. by bringing out the edition of Walt Whitman’s “Leaves of Grass” when another publisher, James R. Osgood & Co. had thrown it out because of threatened legal action by the Attorney-General of Massachusetts for it’s “Alleged immorality.”

At age 25 McKay published the first collected set of Shakespeare’s works in the United States. By December 1905 McKay had absorbed many rival publishing houses into his own and was publishing books in most every popular genre of the times including world famous literature, text books and a catalog of Children’s books.

McKay’s family included a wife, one daughter and four sons. His son Alexander would follow in his father’s shoes by taking over the house to go on to publish works by such notables as Walt Disney’s first Mickey Mouse Comics , Blondie and Dagwood comic series and numerous other works of notoriety.

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