Search Results: American History from Classic Books and Ephemera

1945. Near Fine. 1 typed letter, signed by President Herbert Hoover, on his personal stationery. Thanking Mrs. Joseph W. Jones of Bristol, Tennessee, who had sent a $10 donation to the Boys' Clubs of America in response to Hoover's appeal in the organization's behalf. Herbert Hoover (1874-1964) served as the 31st president of the United States from 1929 to 1933. After leaving the presidency, he and his wife had lived at Palo Alto, California. Following her death in 1944 he relocated to New York City; the address on this letter is 420 Lexington Ave., NYC. In Near Fine Condition: two horizontal folds; light additional creasing; clean and solid.

Pennsylvania Railroad, 1946. Paperback. Near Fine. [16] p.: illustrations; 18 cm. Illustrated wrapper included in page count; stapled. A concise and nicely illustrated history of the Pennsylvania Railroad from its incorporation in 1846 through the Second World War. The railroad issued more than one publication in 1946 with this title. In Near Fine Condition: corners slightly creased; clean and bright.

New York: Latimer Bros. & Seymour, 1867. Very Good. 1 mortgage (4 pages; 42 cm.) published by Latimer Bros. & Seymour, 21 Nassau St., N.Y. Printed and handwritten with one Internal Revenue stamp. Robert Fitzgerald mortgages a lot on the south side of Parmenter St., identified as lot #12. Signed by Robert Fitzgerald and Mary Fitzgerald, witness Charles D. Weir, and the Orange County notary public, Geo. H. Clark. In Very Good Condition: light folds; just starting to separate at ends of folds; clean and crisp.

Philadelphia: John C. Clark & Sons, 1875. Fine. [4] p.; 46 cm. Form no. 45, Executor's, Trustee's or Guardian's Deed, printed and sold by John C. Clark & Sons, Philadelphia. Elijah Stover (1827-1878) and David S. Stover 1836-1916), executors of the will of their father, Jacob K. Stover (1800-1875), late of Towamensing Township, Montgomery County, Pa., sell to Christian S. Stover (1841-1914), also of Towamensing Township, for $2,121 a 10-acre tract of woodland in Towamensing Township on the Green Lane Road. Signed by Elijah Stover and David S. Stover, as well as witnesses Ella R. Boorse and J. C. Boorse, and signed and sealed by J. C. Boorse as justice of the peace; signed by George Schall for the Recorder John W. Schall when it was recorded on April 27 1876 with embossed stamp of the county. John Cassel Boorse (1831-1914) served as a justice of the peace from 1863 until his death in 1914. He was also a surveyor, conducting the original survey for Lansdale, and a director of the Lansdale… Read More

New York: Seven Stories Press, 1997. Paperback. Near Fine -. 352 p.: illustrations; 21 cm. Paperback. Discusses important news stories that were ignored or badly covered by the major news media, with one chapter for each year from 1976 through 1995. Topics include the Trilateral Commission, nuclear power, Central American politics, Iraq, and O. J. Simpson. In Near Fine- Condition: front cover slightly soiled; "(1997)" written on first page by former owner; otherwise, clean and tight.

New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1938. Hardcover. Very Good +/good +. [4], 43, [1] p.: color and black-and-white illustrations; 31 cm. Dark blue cloth spine; color illustrated pastedowns over boards. Dust jacket reproduces illustrations and title from cover. Dust jacket is in a lined Demco cover. Illustrated endpapers. Contents: Pilgrims -- Cooking and Eating -- the Dutch -- Sewing Seams -- Quakers -- Colonial Days -- School -- Days of '76 -- Tithing-Men -- Travel and Taverns -- Civil War Days -- Pioneering -- Christmas -- Arbor Day. "Carolyn" written on front dust jaket flap. Book is in Very Good+ Condition: edges rubbed; clean and bright. Dust jacket is in Good+ Condition: edges rubbed and creased; 2 closed tears of 2 cm. and 4 cm. from edges of back section; clean and bright.

New York: The Free Press, 1997. Hardcover. Near Fine -/near fine -. xxiii, [1], 675 p.; 24 cm. Black and beige cover with gilt spine title. Illustrated dust jacket. Only 60 hours of President Nixon's White House recordings were released to the public in the 1970s. In 1996 over 200 additional hours of tape were released: "every Watergate-related tape, as well as those concerning many other campaign misdeeds and some Pentagon Papers discussions." -- dust jacket. This volume provides background and extensive excerpts from those hours of tape. Book is in Near Fine- Condition: year of publication on front free endpaper; one sentence underlined on p. vii; one page corner creased; otherwise, clean and tight. Dust jacket is in Near Fine Condition: edges rubbed; clean and bright.

Washington, D.C.: Center for National Security Studies, 1975. Paperback. Very Good -. [8], 185 p.; 23 cm. Paperback. Contents: Federal Bureau of Investigation -- FBI Counterintelligence Programs -- FBI Warrantless Electronis Surveillance -- Military Intelligence -- National Security Agency -- Secret Service -- Internal Revenue Service -- Central Initelligence Agency -- Interagency Activities -- Illegal Activities. Very scarce. In Very Good- Condition: cover is rubbed and lightly soiled; pages are clean and tight.

New York: New York Southern Society, 1887. Paperback. Good. 72 p.; 24 cm. Red-brown wrapper with black wrapper title: First Annual Banquet of the New York Southern Society February 22, 1887. Former owner's name at head of front wrapper: A. J. Vanderpoel. Inscribed at head of title page: "Compliments John C. Calhoun." The New York Southern Society was organized in 1886 with the goal of "the commemoration of Southern social life, manners and character," as well as to extend the "proper courtesies to non-resident Southerners" visiting New York. [pp. 6-7] This publication contains the constitution, by-laws, an alphbetical list members, and a report on the First Annual Banquet, including the names of attendees by table and text of speeches. The final speech is by Col. John C. Calhoun (1843-1918), grandson of John C. Calhoun (1782-1850), stout defender of slavery in the ante-bellum South. In 1885 John C. Calhoun II, as he is identified, had moved to New York City, where he lived the rest of his life… Read More

Breinigsville, Pa: Pennsylvania German Society, 1978. Paperback. Very Good. xvii, [1], 238 p.: illustrations, facsimiles; 28 cm. Paperback with cover title and illustration. Sources and Documents of the Pennsylvania Germans: III. Abraham Overholt (1765-1834) was a farmer and joiner in Bucks County, Pa. Peter Ranck (1770-1851) was a joiner in Lancaster County, Pa. Includes a glossary. In Very Good Condition: cover is lightly soiled; pages are clean and tight.

London: Charles Eyre and William Strahan, 1776. Near Fine. Complete title: "An Act for Making Perpetual so much of an Act, made in the Eighth Year of His Present Majesty's Reign, intituled, An Act to continue and amend an Act, made in the Fifth Year of the Reign of His Present Majesty, intituled, 'An Act for Importation of Salted Beef, Pork, Bacon, and Butter, from Ireland, for a limited Time; and for Allowing the Importation of Salted Beef, Pork, Bacon, and Butter, from the British Dominions in America, for a limited Time,' as relates to the Importation of Salted Beef, Pork, Bacon, and Butter from Ireland: And also another Act, made in the Fifth Year of His Present Majesty's Reign, intituled, An Act to Permit the Free Importation of Cattle from Ireland." [2], 287-288 p.; 31 cm. (folio). Disbound. Title page reads "Anno Regni Georgii III. . . . At the Parliament begun and holden at Westminster, the Twenty-ninth Day of November, Anno Domini 1774, in the Fifteenth… Read More

London: Mark Baskett and the Assigns of Robert Baskett, 1764. Fine. [2],403-407,[1] p.; 33 cm. (folio). Three stab-holes, but no other evidence that this was ever bound. Edges are untrimmed. Title page reads "Anno Regni Georgii III. . . . At the Parliament begun and holden at Westminster, the Nineteenth Day of May, Anno Dom. 1761., in the First Year of the Reign of our Sovereign Lord George the Third . . . And from thence continued by several Prorogations to the Fifteenth Day of November, 1763, being the Third Session of the Twelfth Parliament of Great Britain." Woodcut royal coat of arms above the imprint. Woodcut historiated initial at the beginning of the act. In order to increase the supply of hemp and flax for the production of sail cloth and cordage, needed by the Royal Navy and the merchant marine, this act granted a bounty to those who brought those materials from the American colonies to England. In Fine Condition: clean and bright.

London: Mark Baskett and the Assigns of Robert Baskett, 1764. Fine. Title continued: "subject to the like Duty as is now paid on the Exportation of Rice from the said Colonies, to Places in Europe situate to the Southward of Cape Finisterre." [2], 411-418, [2] p.; 33 cm. (folio). Three stab-holes, but no other evidence that this was ever bound. Edges are untrimmed. Title page reads "Anno Regni Georgii III. . . . At the Parliament begun and holden at Westminster, the Nineteenth Day of May, Anno Dom. 1761. in the First Year of the Reign of our Sovereign Lord George the Third . . . And from thence continued by several Prorogations to the Fifteenth Day of November, 1763, being the Third Session of the Twelfth Parliament of Great Britain." The woodcut coat of arms of George III above the imprint. Woodcut historiated initial at the beginning of the act. This act permitted rice from the American colonies of South Carolina and Georgia to be exported to ports south of those… Read More

London: Charles Eyre and William Strahan, 1775. Very Good +. Title continued: "within the Province of Quebec, in America." [2], 1227-1228 p.; 31 cm. (folio). Disbound. Title page reads "Anno Regni Georgii III. . . . At the Parliament begun and holden at Westminster, the Twenty-ninth Day of November, Anno Domini 1774, in the Fifteenth Year of the Reign of our Sovereign Lord George the Third . . . Being the First Session of the Fourteenth Parliament of Great Britain." Woodcut royal coat of arms above the imprint. Woodcut headpiece and historiated initial at the beginning of the act. The act allows run, brandy, and other spirits to be brought into Quebec through additional ports of entry. In Very Good+ Condition: disbound; lightly creased along lower half of spine; clean and bright.

London: Thomas Baskett and the assigns of Robert Baskett, 1758. Fine. Title continued: "and the the Encouragement of the Trade of the Sugar Colonies in America; and to the Landing of Rum or Spirits of the British Sugar Plantations, before the Duties of Excise are paid thereon; and for regulating the Payment of the Duites on Foreign Exciseable Liquors; and for the Relief of Thomas Watson, with regard to the Drawback on certain East India Callicoes; and for rendering more commodious the new Passage leading from Charing Cross." [2], 967-974 p.; 30 cm. (folio). Disbound from a larger volume. Title page reads "Anno Regni Georgii II. . . . At the Parliament begun and holden at Westminster, the thirty first Day of May, Anno Dom. 1754, in the Twenty seventh Year of the Reign of our Sovereign Lord George the Second . . . And from thence continued by several Prorogations to the First Day of December, 1757, being the Fifth Session of this present Parliament." The woodcut coat of arms… Read More

London: Charles Eyre and William Strahan, 1777. Near Fine. [2], 311-312 p.; 31 cm. (folio). Disbound. Title page reads "Anno Regni Georgii III. . . . At the Parliament begun and holden at Westminster, the Twenty-ninth Day of November, Anno Domini 1774, in the Fifteenth Year of the Reign of our Sovereign Lord George the Third . . . And from thence continued, by several Prorogations, to the Thirty-first Day of October, 1776; Being the Third Session of the Fourteenth Parliament of Great Britain." Woodcut royal coat of arms above the imprint. Woodcut headpiece and historiated initial at the beginning of the act. "Whereas a Rebellion and War have been openly and traiterously levied and carried on in certain of His Majesty's Colonies and Plantations in America, and Acts of Treason and Piracy have been committed on the High Seas, and upon the Ships and Goods of His Majesty's Subjects, and many Persons have been seised and taken, who are expressly charged or strongly suspected of… Read More

Philadelphia: Franklin Printing Co, 1889. Pamphlet. Very Good. 19, [1] p.; 23 cm. Pink wrapper printed in black. The House of Refuge was established in 1826 as an alternative to prison for Philadelphia's juvenile delinquents and child vagrants. In 1911 the name was changed to Glen Mills Schools. William Massey (1808-1891) was a very successful brewer in Philadelphia. Isaiah V. Williamson (1803-1889) was a merchant and founder of the Williamson Free School of Mechanical Trades, now the Williamson College of the Trades, the only trade college in the U.S. that costs the students nothing. Each of the men had given the House of Refuge $100,000. The address by N. Dubois Miller provides a history of the institution and explains how the money will be used. Very scarce. In Very Good Condition: wrapper is lightly soiled; one light vertical crease; otherwise, clean and solid.

Salem, Mass: Salem Press, 1889. Paperback. Good. [2], 50 p., 3 leaves of plates; 24 cm. Plain wrapper printed in black. "Choate -- Cushing -- Rantoul" -- at head of title page and front wrapper. Pages are unopened. Reprinted from Historical Collections Essex Institute, vol. 26. Eben F. Stone (1822-1895) was an attorney; led the 48th Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War; served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1867, 1877, 1878, and 1880; and served in Congress from 1881 to 1887. In this address he discusses the history of the law in Massachusetts, in particular focusing on Massachusetts attorneys Rufus Choate (1799-1859), Caleb Cushing (1800-1879), and Robert Rantoul, Jr., (1805-1852). Scarce. In Good Condition: front and back wrapper are soiled and detached, with loss along edges; a few page corners dusty; otherwise, clean and solid.

Philadelphia: M. Fithian, 1844. Paperback. Good. 12 p.; 22 cm. Lacking wrapper. Stamped on title page: "Case 42 Shelf E." In early May 1844, Protestant nativists in Philadelphia, feeling threatened by the inscreasing number of Catholic immigrants, held public meetings accusing Catholics of seeking to have the Bible removed from public schools among other things. Incendiary language led to violence in which people and buildings were attacked. The Court of Quarter Sessions created a grand jury to investigate, which concluded that the Catholics were to blame and the nativists were "unoffending citizens." On June 18, 1844, a meeting of Catholic citizens of the city appointed a committee to draft a response. In this address they refute the unfounded charge that they sought to have the Bible removed from the schools and responded to other recent events. In Good Condition: chipping along spine; first leaf and last are partially detached; very lightly soiled.

West Point, N.Y.: West Point Military Academy, 1888. Paperback. Very Good. 8 p.; 17 cm. White wrappers. Wrapper title. "July" crossed out and "June" written next to it. Henry Flanders (1826-1911) was a member of the Board of Visitors for the United States Military Academy at West Point, appointed by the President of the United States. According to the New York Times: "Mr. Flanders spoke in a clear, strong voice, and was easily heard throughout the assembly." Flanders was born in New Hampshire and practiced law in Kentucky and South Carolina before settling in Philadelphia. He also wrote and published Treatise on Maritime Law (1852), Treatise on the Law of Shipping (1853), Lives of the United States Chief Justices (1855), Memoirs of the Cumberland (1856), An Exposition of the Constitution of the United States (1860), Treatise on the Principles of Insurance (1871), Adventures of a Virginian (1881), and The Life of John Marshall (1904). In Very Good Condition:… Read More