Library Company of Philadelphia
#OnThisDay in 1780, Benedict Arnold met with British Major John Andre to negotiate a deal wherein he would help the British gain control of West Point during the Revolutionary War in exchange for money and a highly-ranked position in the British Army. Arnold’s plot was foiled and Arnold became one of the nation’s best-known traitors.
His wife Margaret “Peggy” Shippen Arnold played an oft-overlooked role in aiding her husband’s betrayal of the Continental Army. Peggy, who corresponded regularly with Andre prior to her marriage, passed coded messages between the Major and her husband in letters.
Peggy was not the only woman involved in wartime espionage. The Culper Ring, which uncovered Arnold’s deceit, had a woman (who is known only as Agent 355) among its ranks.
Daniel Gardner, [Copy portrait of Mrs. Benedict Arnold and child], 1850. 1/6th plate daguerreotype.
When you can’t choose just one…
These finis pieces are from an 1812 type specimen of metal ornaments by Edmund Fry (London).
We can relate that top one, how about you?
We’ve got a real soft spot for over-marbled waste paper covers, so of course couldn’t resist sharing this little volume. One of the more famous examples of over-marbling involved printed waste from Fanny Hill, an erotic novel written by John Cleland. The printed waste here is from the The Moral Instructor and Guide to Virtue and Happiness which is not as exciting but far more appropriate for the book of hymns which it covers.
J.A. Burke. A selection of favourite conference hymns, with historical sketches of church history. Albany: A.N. Sherman, 1829.
Horizontorium prints were optical illusion games which were meant to be viewed through a paper tab with a pinhole. Viewing the prints in this way was meant to make the image look normal.
This horizontorium depicts the Bank of Philadelphia at the southwest corner of Fourth and Chestnut Streets. It is the only recognized American horizontorium image.
J.J. Barker, Horizontorium from the original drawing by William Mason, ca. 1832. Lithograph.
#OnThisDay in 1847, General Winfield Scott led American troops to Mexico City, where the U.S. flag was raised over the Hall of Montezuma.
The Mexican-American War was waged after the United States annexed the Republic of Texas and set off a conflict with Mexico. The war also sparked internal political divisions because Texas would likely be accepted into the union as a slave state.
This etching is a reproduction of “War News from Mexico,” a popular painting by American artist Richard Caton Woodville. The painting depicts a group of townspeople gathering to read a news report from the battlefront. Such reports marked the first time a U.S. war was covered by mass media. The reproduction of the painting as prints like this one is further evidence of the growing reach of print culture.
Some marbled beauties for you on this #ForeEdgeFriday! These edges are from a seven volume set of Harper’s Story Books, published by Harper & Brothers circa 1857.
We love the gold stamp used on the cover of this edition of Wonderful Characters. Comprised of vignettes compiled and illustrated by James Caulfield and Henry Wilson, the book aimed to celebrate eccentricity and individuality at a time when “all people and all places seem now to be alike."
Henry Wilson and James Caulfield. The Book of Wonderful Characters: Memoirs and Anecdotes of Remarkable and Eccentric Persons in All Ages and Countries. London: J.C. Hotten, [1869].
Just a few blocks south of our building on Locust Street was an antique shop owned by James Eham, an African American businessman who was born in Virginia in 1842 and died in Philadelphia in 1930. Posters promoting a production of “Our Colored Boys Over There” at the Royal Theater cover the building adjacent to Eham’s elaborately decorated shop, showcasing the cultural vibrancy of Philadelphia’s Black community in the early twentieth century.
Alfred Hand, Junk shop at 13th & Pine, ca. 1920. Film negative.
Happy Labor Day! This postcard documents a 1908 trolley strike in Chester, Pennsylvania. In response to falling revenue, the Chester Traction Company slashed pay rates. This decrease in pay prompted the Amalgamated Association of Street Railway Employees to shut down public trolleys from Philadelphia to Wilmington.
Trolley Strike postcard (Philadelphia: Keystone Post Card Company, ca. 1910). Photolithograph. From the Brightbill Postcard Collection.
Please excuse us while we swoon over these gold printed #endoftheweekendpapers and keep swooning right on into the weekend.
Printed advertisement endpapers from The Lady’s Almanac for 1854. By Damrell & Moore & G. Coolidge. Boston: John P. Jewett & Co., [1853].