“The newspapers are making morning after morning the rough draft of history. Later, the historian will come, take down the old files, and transform the crude but sincere and accurate annals of editors and reporters into history, into literature. The modern school must study the daily newspaper.” - The State (Columbia, SC) December 5, 1905 On ...
This week we continue our curators' acquisitions stories with curator of newspapers Vince Golden. His story combines elements of both of the previous posts (I and II), making for quite an interesting turn of events! There are various phrases in the English language that mean act immediately. Strike while the iron is hot. He who hesitates ...
Ever since we’ve been recording information, we’ve been trying to find ways to keep it out of the wrong hands. This need often times comes to the forefront during times of war and conflict when information is at its most valuable. Codes, ciphers, even invisible ink, have been employed quite successfully and famously in the ...
Manton, Walter P. Taxidermy Without a Teacher. So. Framingham [Mass.]: The J.C. Clark Printing Company, 1876. The author describes how he originally wanted to call this book “Simple Chats on Taxidermy,” and in it he certainly takes a conversational approach after first setting the stage: “I ask the reader to take himself, in imagination, to my ...
Last week, curator of children's literature Laura Wasowicz posted about finding a unique find in a dusty house. This week, curator of graphic arts Lauren Hewes talks about another tack curators more often have to take: "hard work and diligence." Recently, the Society’s curatorial staff was asked to blog about significant acquisitions and the process by ...
Peoria Daily Transcript (IL) Sept. 27, 1858. June 9, 1859. Those who research the history of printing love mistakes. It is the little “oops” that give us clues into the methods of production. A piece of type might work loose and fall on top of the bed and get printed that way, showing us the shape of ...
Writings of Omaha. Chicago: S. S. Jones, Publisher, Religio-Philosophical Journal Office, 1869. APPARENTLY UNRECORDED, ONLY KNOWN COPY! Describing the nature of reality, electricity, and the spirit realm in 61 numbered paragraphs, this overview of Spiritualist theory is also an apparently unrecorded Ante-Fire Chicago imprint. The 26-page pamphlet in its original printed green wrappers was issued by the ...
The collection of election ballots at the American Antiquarian Society is an impressive group of 952 items spanning the nineteenth through the early twentieth centuries. Several of these are individual ballots for specific elections, others are completely uncut; some are annotated, others are marked-up canvassing sheets (with sample tickets) or are comprised of paste downs. ...
In the most recent issue of the Almanac, we had a feature article about the process of bringing new items into the collection. This got us thinking about some of the interesting ways in which these treasures are found. In the coming weeks, each curator will share one of their favorite stories about finding a ...
For those that are sad to see the holiday pass, here's one last dose of Halloween for you. Today we are featuring a letter found by one of our volunteers while processing a new manuscript collection, the White Family Papers. John White, the patriarch of the wealthy West Boylston family, was a pioneer in textile ...
Nothing is hair-raising quite like a chilling photograph. This month, when the occult is most heavily sought after in popular culture, we made a small collection accessible which examines death, the afterlife, photography, technology, and (naturally) print culture. AAS’s impressive collection of stereocard views includes a subset categorized as “Ghost” images. This includes approximately 31 images ...
Holmes, Moses B., Excelsior Writing Book. Moses B. Holmes (1837-1894) lived in Campton, New Hampshire. He married Ann M. Bartlett (1839-1914) and the couple had two children, Willie B. Holmes and Lewis Holmes. Moses was young when he began writing in this writing book, which was manufactured by Norton and Crawford in Concord, New Hampshire; some ...
Editor's note: In this week's recommended reading for "fiction published before 1900," AAS member and Councilor Chuck Arning, park ranger and AV specialist at the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor, talks about a nineteenth-century book that was passed down through his family. Unlike all of the other books in this series (see Philip Gura's ...
The Game of Jack of All Trades. New York: McLoughlin Bros., ca. 1900. This is a welcome addition to our holdings of McLoughlin Bros. games. McLoughlin published an extensive line of small boxed card games, like Jack of All Trades. Games and picture books about professions and trades were used since the late eighteenth century to ...
Many of you may already follow the fantastic blog Boston 1775, but if you don’t now is a great time to begin! A post this past weekend explored the subjects of tonight’s Public Program with Mary Kelley, William Tudor and Delia Jarvis. Be sure to check out the post and join us tonight in Antiquarian ...
