The Poetical Works of John Greenleaf Whittier, Complete in Two Volumes.

Boston: Fields, Osgood & Co., Successors to Ticknor and Fields, 1869 Stated 1869 reprint. [Copyright 1857 Ticknor & Fields] Hard cover , 24mo. in a contemporary re-binding of full leather blind stamped with triple ruled border featuring a design of Gothic-style interlaced circles with floral decoration, the spine with five raised bands and the title blocked in gold, marbled end papers with the dentelles and board edges blocked in gold, all edges gilt, and tissue-guarded engraved frontispiece portrait of the Author, viii plus 395 and vi plus 420 pp. There are included text annotations at the end of each volume. **Condition: Very Good. Some marks, one scuff, to covers. Light rubbing at foot of both spines, and along one raised band of Vol. 2. Dent at top edge where Vol 1 was likely tied together at some point (?). Sign of some pooling water damage to very bottom of front pastedown of Vol. 1 causing minor bubble (--house was involved in a fire in the 1950's causing books to be hastily rescued. ) A small tideline appears on the preliminaries of Vol 1 affecting the author portrait, which has also lost parts of its tissue guard. Title page on Vol. I a more tanned than the rest of text. Overall, however, this is a handsome set: tight, clean and bright. Gilt remains bright. **Haverhill, Massachusetts-born John Greenleaf Whittier (1807-1892), was considered one of the two best nineteenth century American poets. In the Author's preliminary Note to the edition, he states this represents "for the first time, the complete collection of my poetic works." (p. iii) Prior titles included in the anthology include The Early and Legendary Poems, Voices of Freedom (works on abolition and slavery); Miscellaneous, ; In War Time (1857); Home Ballads and Occasional Poems. Vol. II Includes Songs of Labor, and Other Poems (1850), The Chapel of Hermits and Other Poems (1852); The Panorama, and Other Poems (1856); Ballads; Later Poems (1856-7); Home Ballads and Poems and Lyrics.**Provenance: Maj.Ben: Perley Poore or his wife Virginia (Dodge) Poore. Purchased directly from descendants. (See also our inventory no. 8937 for matching item, signed.) The book here was likely purchased in Washington DC, although the bookseller's label has now gone, where Virginia purchased (and signed) the other item, in an identical binding and published in the same year. The influential Washington journalist, foreign correspondent, and author, Maj. Ben: Perley Poore (1820-1887) was also the first President of Washington's Gridiron Club. The Perley Poores would live the latter part of their lives at his family home in West Newbury, Massachusetts. (Note: a copy showing the original cloth binding can be found online; a number of books from this owner were rebound in leather as a matter of course.) OCLC 1157063912. . Hard Cover. Very Good.