Tuesday, September 28 - 7:30 p.m. Discovering the Great Divorce by Ilyon Woo In 1814, Eunice Chapman's estranged husband stole away her three children and took them to live among the Shakers. At a time when wives and mothers had few rights to speak of, Eunice Chapman waged a colossal campaign for her children's ...
Friday, September 24th, is National Punctuation Day. Here at the American Antiquarian Society, we take our commas and semi-colons quite seriously. We hold in our collection numerous grammar manuals, essays, school books, and pamphlets on the correct use of the English language, dating from the 1780s right on up to 1875. However, being the curator ...
The History and Adventures of Little Eliza. Philadelphia: William Charles, 1811. This imprint is among the earliest American editions of a book first printed in London accompanied by a set of paper dolls. The celebrated Philadelphia engraver and publisher William Charles integrated the images with the text as a picture book, complete with his subtle background ...
The Karl J. R. Arndt Collection of Charles Sealsfield Mrs. Blanca H. Arndt of Worcester has donated to AAS the remarkable collection of works by and about the German-American author Charles Sealsfield (1793-1864) formed by her late husband, Karl J. R. Arndt. Numbering some 250 volumes, with accompanying research files, the Arndt gift elevates AAS’s ...
The vast collections at an institution like the American Antiquarian Society have been built and sorted over decades and, somewhat to the surprise of many scholars and readers, continue to be processed today. Bulk collections are constantly being inventoried and rehoused to address conservation concerns and, when the Society has the resources and staff available, ...
Even though the calendar says September, fall seems to be the last thing on our climate’s mind. Up here in Worcester, Massachusetts at least, we’re hanging onto to the summer weather, clocking a scorching 97 degrees last week! While I was excited to finally break out the cinnamon and pumpkin, I think it best to ...
Two titles were recently added to AAS's collection of Amateur Newspapers. The Orb. Portland, ME. 1838. 3 issues. Adopted by Jo Radner. The Liliputian. Canajoharie, NY. 1876, 1877. 22 issues. Amateur newspapers were printed usually by teenagers, and more for the pleasure and experience rather than profit. The Orb (recently "adopted" by Jo Radner during AAS's ...
This image above of a woman reading in a busy interior, surrounded by household chaos appears in two gift books in the Society’s large collection, one from 1849 and one from 1853. The main figure sits completely engrossed in her book while the baby cries and a cat and a dog steal food. ...
Recent AAS fellow Hugh McIntosh recently spent some time with our Valentines Collection. This collection includes some of the frilly, lovey-dovey valentines one would expect, but also some unexpected gems! The comic valentines of the 19th century in particular caught Hugh's eye, and he shares the following about his look at the 19th century's sense ...
Many of us begin a new academic or fiscal year this week. In the spirit of new beginnings and renewed vows of organization, AAS has added an RSS feed to our website. Those who have visited the AAS website recently have no doubt noticed how much content has been added, events promoted, books published, etc. ...
The Mince Meat Throwdown was a success! Unlike the chowder made from Mrs. Bliss’ cookbook, the mince pie actually held its own as a main course. The recipe could have easily worked as a dessert pie, being as sweet as it was. Even though there was beef in the pie, it certainly didn’t taste like ...
Amateur city directory. Chicago: Warner Bros., 1876. This rare pamphlet chronicles Chicago’s amateur press community as of 1876. Its publisher was 15-year-old Frank Dudley Warner, editor of the recently established Amateur Monthly—one of a burgeoning number of amateur newspapers then being published nationwide by hobbyists on table-top presses. Included is a directory of nearly a hundred ...
The following conundrum for Past is Present readers comes from AAS reader Mary Fissell. I’m writing a book about Aristotle's Masterpiece, and have just spent a couple of very productive and happy weeks working with the AAS’s collection of 50+ editions. This book, neither by Aristotle, nor a masterpiece, is one of the longest-running popular medical ...
Fate of the Rebel Flag. Painted by William Bauly, lithographed by Sarony, Major & Knapp. New York: William Schaus, 1861). Due to the approaching 150th anniversary of the American Civil War, several examples from AAS’s holdings of war images and broadsides will appear in loan exhibitions and as reproductions in upcoming publications. This chromolithograph from a ...
The following post comes to us from AAS reader Peter MacInerney. Early in January 1855, a Concord-based free-lance writer, occasional surveyor, and sometime lecturer, visited the American Antiquarian Society at its then-new building. This second Antiquarian Hall had been completed little more than one year before, after the Society outgrew its original building. The visitor recounted ...
