GEN: Copyright

[Mary K Stoiber <marstoib@CSD.UWM.EDU>]

A couple of reading teachers have been discussing copyright dates with
their students and now we are all confused.  We have found different
copyrights for the same book depending on the publisher. Am I correct in
assuming the publisher has purchased the copyright and puts the year on
the book????  How then is one to find out when the work was actually
created.  Case in point in The Red Badge of Courage which was originally
written in the late 1800's yet none of the books we have allude to the
date.  Is there any way to find the original copyright date?

Thanks


Mary Stoiber
marstoib@csd.uwm.edu
Cedarburg Middle School
Cedarburg, WI