It may not be Sunday anymore, but this alligator is still giving us a case of the scaries! 

Marriott Canby Morris, [Alligator with open mouth], 1913. Gelatin silver print. 

Image depicts an alligator with its mouth open laying in a patch of grass, likely in Jacksonville, Florida. A pond is visible behind the alligator’s bared teeth.      

It may be Friday the 13th, but at least that means it’s Friday! And I don’t know about you, but this #finispiece seems to have had quite the week, so #TGIF! 

Jacques Houllier. Omnia Opera Practica. Coloniae Allobrogum [Geneva] : Excudebat Iacobus Stoer, 1623.

Found within the pages of an 1849 edition of “A Parting Gift,” this carefully cut and woven bit of paper art offers a hint into the life of this book before it came into our hands. 

Bits of ephemera such as this, whether they be lovingly crafted tokens tucked away for safe keeping or purely utilitarian bookmarks, offer clues into the history of books, the people who made them, the people who read them and the people who loved them. 

No skates? No sled? No problem! With Solar Tip Shoes you can still experience that #WinterWonderland thrill of slipping down a hill of ice into a dogpile!

Solar Tip Shoes: Made only by John Mundell & Co. Philadelphia.
[Philadelphia], [ca. 1880]. 1 print: chromolithograph; 66 x 51 cm. 

#OnThisDay in 1768, the Royal Academy of Arts was founded in London. A few decades later, Pennsylvania-born painter Benjamin West became the Academy’s second president. Pictured here is an engraving done after West’s monumental painting that idealizes William Penn’s entry into a treaty with the Lenape. 

Wm. Penn’s treaty with the Indians when he founded the Province of Pennsila. 1661 (New York: James Baille, [ca. 1849]). Hand-colored lithograph. 

Image depicts the treaty made at the village of Shackamaxon (i.e. Penn Treaty Park, Kensington) on the Delaware River. Penn, surrounded by his delegates, negotiates with the Delaware Indian chief near a giant elm tree. Crates of goods are sat upon and displayed by the English delegation. Native Americans, including a translator and a woman breast-feeding her baby, participate in and watch the negotiations. Also shows brick residences being built in the background. River depicted on right.

Waving goodbye to this weekend like… 

Marriott Canby Morris, [Thomas C. Potts with Sarah Rhoads Potts over his shoulder. Sea Girt, NJ], 1908. Film negative. 

Image depicts Marriott C. Morris’ brother-in-law Thomas C. Potts hoisting Morris’ niece Sarah Rhoads Potts as a baby over his shoulder on a porch. The baby smiles and waves her arms. 

Philadelphia missed out on most of the #snow that hit the northeast this week, which makes us a little sad. On the bright side, we also didn’t have to worry about inclement weather making it hard to get around. 

 With that in mind, might we recommend rapid transit when it is an option? Rabbit transit is just far too unpredictable.  

 Image: Partridge & Richardson, Mammoth Dress Trimming House. [United States], [ca. 1880].

#OnThisDay in 1775, the first official U.S. flag, the Grand Union, was flown over the USS Alfred. This metamorphic pamphlet, which was designed for visitors to the Betsy Ross House here in Philadelphia, lets viewers observe the history and evolution of American flag designs. 

The History of Our Flag (Philadelphia: Fanny Farmer Candy Shops, Inc., 1937). Illustrated pamphlet. 

Images depict different stages of a fold-out pamphlet. Each image shows different stages of the evolution of the American flag.

This is the exact level of excitement and energy we’re trying to achieve on this #MorrisMonday! 

Marriot Canby Morris, [Parachute game, Boys Parlors Camp, Wildwood, NJ], 1907. Film negative. 

Image depicts a group of boys and young men from the Boys’ Parlors Association launching a young boy into the air with a large blanket at Wildwood, N.J. An American flag flying on a makeshift flagpole and a tent stand in the background.      

It’s the day after Thanksgiving, which means leftover pumpkin pie for breakfast followed by some Black Friday shopping! Might we suggest adding some books to your shopping list? 

Gift books were incredibly popular in the second quarter of the 19th century. The first American gift book, The Atlantic Souvenir, was published in 1826. By 1846 there were at least sixty different titles on the market, and by 1860 the fad was nearly over. 

 Image: Interior view of George G. Evans’ original gift book establishment. 439 Chesnut [sic] Str. Philadelphia: Taken from nature and drawn on stone by E. Sachse. Baltimore: Coloring print of E. Sachse & Co. Sun Iron Building, [1859]. Chromolithograph 30 x 47 cm.