Library Company of Philadelphia
Lu Lu the Man Bird, who was one of the main performers at W.C. Coup’s Monster Four-Ring Circus and Paris Hippodrome, is here to help us celebrate the 161st anniversary of the trapeze! The flying trapeze was invented by Jules Léotard, who debuted the act on this day in 1859. Léotard, as you might have already guessed, also created the garment which bears his name.
To Make a Tart of Medlers
Take Medlers that be rotten, and stamp them, and set them upon a chafin-dish with coales, and beat in two yolks of Eggs, boyling till it be somewhat thick, then season it with Sugar, Cinamon, and Ginger, and lay it in paste.
If you are looking for an alternative to pumpkin pie this year (or maybe an addition to pumpkin pie), might we suggest medlars? Medlars, or Mespilus germanica, are members of the rose family and grow on deciduous trees. The fruit must be bletted, or over-ripe, before eating and will look soft, wrinkly, and rotten. The taste? Like apple butter!
A book of fruits and flovvers. London: Printed by M.S. for Tho Jenner, 1653.
Just over a century ago, the United States faced back-to-back crises: World War I and the 1918 flu pandemic. This page from an album compiled by Carson R. Drucker, a soldier and amateur photographer, features a now-familiar image of a person wearing a mask in an effort to prevent the spread of the virus.
The album was compiled by Draucker between 1913 and 1918 and contained photographs of his family and friends in Philadelphia, getaways and vacations, and his experiences as a World War I draftee in Fort Sill, Ok. and Rochester and Long Island N.Y.
Attention book lovers!
Save the date and join the Library Company for the Antiquarian Booksellers’ Association of America’s (ABAA) inaugural Boston Virtual Book Fair: November 12-14, 2020. More than 150 exhibitors from around the globe are featuring new acquisitions, discoveries, and rare finds exclusively at the Virtual Book Fair, which begins at 11 a.m. (EST). Be the first in line and join us at abaa.org/vbf!
James Cremer, [Young girl leaning on book on chair], ca. 1868. Albumen on stereograph mount.
We love the decidedly autumnal gauffered acorns on the fore-edge of this photo album. And those clasps aren’t half bad, either!
We’ve all been there before. This book, however, is impeccably dressed.
Butler, William Allen. Nothing to wear : an episode of city life. New York: Rudd & Carleton, 1857.
It’s November already? Have you started thinking about the menu for Thanksgiving?
Our table won’t look anything like this one, but hey, we can dream.
Kugler’s Restaurant Postcard, ca. 1900-1920, from the Brightbill Postcard Collection.
Election Day is here! This print from an unfinished plate by Philadelphia engraver Alexander Lawson depicts a chaotic scene in front of the State House on Chestnut Street during a city election. The scene depicts voters arriving, completing and switching ballots, and blocking the polls as politicians and campaigners, including former mayor John Barker, lobby for votes and engage in debate.
Alexander Lawson after a painting by John Lewis Krimmel, The election day in Philadelphia, ca. 1894. Engraving.
This year’s election certainly is not the first in American history to be rife with tension. This lithograph from 1864 depicts an incident at a polling place in Philadelphia. The caption of the print describes a confrontation between a member of the Democratic Party and an elderly man. The man, whose son was a Union soldier killed during the Civil War, angrily berates the Democrat for encouraging him to vote for the party affiliated with the Confederacy.
Voting matters. If you haven’t already, get out and vote!
The Library Company will be closed on Tuesday, November 3 to allow our staff the time to be civically engaged.
Octavius Catto poster designed by Visitor Services Coordinator, Katie Maxwell.