Rare books from Main Street Fine Books & Manuscripts, ABAA

Known in the German-speaking world as "Ernst von Osterreich," this son of Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian II and Maria of Spain was educated with his brother, Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II; in 1573 and 1587 he was a candidate for the throne of Poland; from 1576 on he served as governor of the Archduchy of Austria in 1590 he was named governor of Inner Austria; from 1594 until his death he served as governor of Spanish Netherlands. ALS in Italian, 1p lettersheet, 7½" X 12", Vienna, Austria, 1579 March 26. Very good. Slight bit of age toning and quite minor foxing; inconspicuous small paper loss at left margin (¼" X 2¼") bears old but expert replacement. Overall attractive, boldly written and easily legible. Writing to his cousin, the Duke of Savoy (Emmanuel Philibert, 1528-80, Duke of Savoy 1553-80), it reads (translation): "Sir: Mr. de la Cruz, your ambassador, gave me a letter from you several days ago, and although I wanted to answer it before this, I have been kept from it by various things, and I… Read More

This legendary R & B tenor hit the charts in the mid-50s with the Drifters and such hits as "Money Honey," "Such a Night" and "Honey Love" before going solo. Two items: First, an AQS, 1p, irregularly-trimmed (roughly rectangular) 8" X 4½", n.p., n.d. [January 1958]. Very good. Yellowed tape stain at each corner and two more small tape stains along right edge, touching slightly upon a couple of words. Curious free verse poem or song lyrics -- whether to one of McPhatter's published songs is uncertain. "I want to walk in the shadow of your arms," it begins. "I want to live by the touch of your lips. I want to be in the River with you, while the sea's calm, I want to live and love I don't want to miss. I want to live with a love that's divine, I want to be with you and give you all my love. I want to say that you are mine. I want to ask faith from the one above." Boldly signed at the conclusion. An unheard-of McPhatter rarity, quite intriguing and exceedingly scarce -- and worthy of further research.… Read More

Original space-flown flag (5½" X 4¼") and cloth patch (4¼" X 4 3/4") presented on a 12 3/4" X 16 3/4" cream colored heavy stock, in turn mounted to a 16" X 20" pale blue mat board. Very good. Bit of slight soiling. The cream colored stock bears glossy photographs on the upper left (takeoff) and lower right (landing) corners. At lower left is a circular flute-edged NASA gold foil seal, and the space-flown flag is mounted at upper right -- consisting of the State Seal of Illinois, with the word "ILLINOIS" below, against a white background. The printed text cited above appears immediately below this flag, and the crew patch below this text. JOHN YOUNG (born 1930) signs boldly in black ink to the left of the patch, while ROBERT L. CRIPPEN (born 1937) signs to the right. The Columbia STS-1 flight was called by NASA "The boldest test flight in history." It was the first orbital flight of the Space Shuttle program, lasting 54½ hours and orbiting the Earth 37 times; commanded by John Young and piloted by… Read More

This east coast watercolorist and children's book artist illustrated and often also wrote a wide array of children's books from the 1930s into the 1960s -- including "Wilderness Pet," "Wiggly and Giggly the Little Twin Bears," "Whitetail: King of the Forest," "The Three Puppies," "The Small One," "The Nutcracker of Nuremberg," "The Bluebird," "The Night Before Christmas," "The Enchantment of Santa Claus," "The Christ Child," "Pussy Cat Talks to Her Kittens," "Polly Parrot," "Piccolino," "Is There a Santa Claus" as well as some "Dick and Jane Basic Readers." Offered here is the near-complete original illustration art for Smock's 1937 children's book "Jocko," written by Dorothy Winchell and published by Albert Whitman & Co. of Chicago. Represented here is almost the entire book, from front cover art through closing "The End" image -- lacking only 3-4 pages (front board graphic, frontispiece, pages 21 and 31). Most are in the form of ca. 10" X 15" heavy stock art boards, most with typeset text blocks,… Read More

Dublin: S. Price, et al., 1779. Hardcover. 8vo. Rebound in full calf with compartments and gilt spine lettering. (18pp), xiii, 508pp. Engraved full-page plate. Modern binding and endpapers are fine, while text block is good plus to very good. Moderately age toned throughout, with occasional bits of foxing; lacks map and one plate. First Irish edition, appearing after the 1778 London first edition and apparently before the 1779 London second edition. Reaffixed to the new front pastedown is an armorial bookplate that purports to be that of George Washington -- but alas our research shows this is spurious, as it bears neither the chain lines nor the well-known slip-of-the-burin scratch near lower right that are hallmarks of authentic Washington plates. This example is also not one of the forged bookplates that appeared in a couple hundred volumes in a New England auction in 1863, nor is it one of the late 19th century restrikes made from the original copper plate by well-meaning Washington descendants.… Read More

Chicago: E. Whitefield, 1860. Remarkable and rare grouping of five color lithographs from Edwin Whitefield's series of seven downtown Chicago scenes, lithographed and printed by Charles Shober in Chicago. The prints each measure about 10¼" X 18¼", and all are uniformly matted and framed to 26½" X 20½". In order of issuance: "View of Illinois and Michigan Central Depot & c. From the Corner of Madison St. and Michigan Avenue" (1860). "View of Clark & Wells St. Bridges From the Foot of River St." (1861). "View of Michigan Avenue & c. From Sturges & Buckingham's Elevator" (1861). "View of Rush St. Bridge & c. From Nortons Block River St." (1861). "Michigan Terrace Michigan Avenue Looking towards the Central Depot" (1863). Overall very good. The coloring on all are bright and delicate, with mild to moderate age toning evident. Framing is adequate -- basic and edgeworn, but since this is how Governor Stevenson framed them they are part of the story and remain as is. These rare individual prints seldom… Read More

This noted Montana-born children's book author and illustrator is remembered for "The Runaway Sardine" (her first book, 1929) and 35 others, most published by Knopf: "The Greedy Goat," "Drusilla," "The Topsy-Turvy Family," "Mr. Wren's House" and others. Offered here is the near-complete original ink and watercolor artwork for an early title illustrated but not authored by Brock: Louise F. Encking's translation of E.T.A. Hoffmann's classic "The Nutcracker and the Mouse=King," published by Albert Whitman & Co. of Chicago in 1930, when Brock was just starting out and hungry for work. Consists of 25 slightly translucent leaves (each two sheets either stapled or tipped together at top), approximately 13" X 17", 14 containing a large single black ink line drawings (six signed by Brock at lower margin) and the remainder mostly containing two small drawings per sheet. All 25 have an overlay sheet on top of the ink… Read More

Jean Paul," a much-admired and much-maligned German writer of the Romantic period whose prolific output included such novels as "The Invisible Lodge" (1793), "Hesperus" (1795), "Siebenkäs" (1796-97), "Titan" (1800-03), "The Awkward Age" (1804-05) and many others. ALS in German, 1p, 6¼" X 8", Hof in Vorgtland, Germany, 13 December 1789. Addressed to (in translation) "Highly honored and respected Sir." Very good. Mounting traces along left edge (verso only). An unusually early example, boldly penned in dark brown ink during a period when he was living with his mother and tutoring children in a nearby village; his pseudonymously-published, poorly-received "Selections from the Devil's Papers" was published earlier this same year. In this letter he writes an unnamed publisher that (in translation) "I take the liberty to send you the beginning of a manuscript and beg you to give me your opinion as to its probable acceptance or rejection at your earliest convenience. I have the honor to sign myself with… Read More

New York: Harper & Brothers, 1851. Hardcover. Small 8vo. Original pebble-grained red cloth with gilt spine lettering and blind-embossed rules and front board publisher's device. xxiii, 635pp, (6pp ads). Very good. Internally tight and unrestored, showing only mild sporadic age toning and occasional light foxing; binding is sound and decent, with exposed tips; somewhat rough spine has had mild and discreet archival restoration; pencilled 1852 ownership signature on inner flyleaf. A tight, presentable and quite handleable first U.S. edition, first issue, of this giant of 19th century literature. One of only 3000 U.S. copies, the American edition (preceded by the 2-volume English version one month prior) met with little fanfare, and supposedly many unsold copies were destroyed in an 1854 warehouse fire. Original terra cotta endpapers. Despite wear this is a respectable copy, appropriately priced. Housed in a handsome custom red cloth clamshell case with gilt spine lettering. BAL 13664.

Lexington: Holman & Gray, 1851. Hardcover. 12mo. Quarter black calf with compartments and gilt lettering and marbled paper over boards. iv, 200pp. Very good. Tight-hinged and fully handleable, though mildly edgeworn and with marbled boards rubbed; text block lightly age toned and occasionally foxed; contemporary ownership signature on front pastedown, same on inner flyleaf and pencilled at top of title page; ca. 1900 bookplate on front pastedown. First of this edition, tight and fairly nice, being a revised edition of his 1850 "Treatise on Daguerreotype." In 1851, upstate New York minister Levi L. Hill (1816-65) caused controversy when he claimed to have developed a process to create color photographs, which he called "heliochromes" (and which soon became personalized to "Hillotypes"). It wasn't until 1856 that Hill published his "Treatise on Heliochromy" to explain the process, but a daguerreotypist got the book banned on grounds of libel and all but a few were pulped. Hill's process was long… Read More

This most renowned of British naval heroes is almost as famous for his scandalous open affair with one of the most famous and beautiful women in England, the married Emma Hamilton, despite having lost most of his teeth, the use of his right eye and his right arm in various military successes; his nautical victories against the French made him Napoleon's nemesis; killed aboard his ship "Victory" in the battle of Trafalgar. ALS, 1p, 7" X 8¼", Burnham, 1793 February 2. Addressed to "Gentlemen." Near fine. A boldly penned and handsome example of Nelson's scarce right-handed penmanship, four years prior to losing his right arm in a July 1797 battle and having to learn to write left handed. Rather cryptic financial content, reading in full: "I am glad to hear You did not bring our trust money into the Lands as they had risen so very much. I shall be in Town on tuesday Evening & shall probably see Mr. Creed on Wednesday, therefore please to let the money Remain in your hands 'till you hear farther from my… Read More

Known as "America's first great photograph collector," this pioneering figure championed the preservation of historical photographs, traveling the country to rescue original glass plate negatives from certain destruction; so little appreciated and understood were they that he occasionally found them tossed aside in barns and sometimes even reused as glass panes in windows. Meserve managed to save countless original negatives created by Mathew B. Brady, Alexander Gardner and other seminal photographers from certain destruction. To the Lincoln images he assigned numbers ("Meserve numbers") still in use today. Meserve produced small format (2" X 3") prints from many of his negatives for a series of small print-run booklets, today highly desirable and sought after. For special occasions and friends he would produce large format prints using the original glass plate negatives. The immediacy of these first-generation prints is startling -- we've grown so accustomed to seeing umpteenth-generation… Read More

Collection of 20 autograph items from a variety of 20th century notables all answering the same question posed by a 7th/8th grade English teacher in Illinois: "We will be very grateful if you will tell us what you feel was the most important lesson you learned when you were a teenager." By profession, the correspondents consist of (most to least) entertainers, politicians, authors, athletes, military and religious. Replies consist of 9 Typed Letters Signed, 7 Autograph Notes Signed, two Typed Notes Signed and one Autograph Note Signed. Several of the ANsS and one TNS are penned on the educator's handwritten letter and another is penned on the verso of an inscribed photograph. Dates range from August 1990 to December 1999, with the majority dating from the early 1990s, sizes ranges from 8½" X 11" to 3" X 5", and condition ranges from near fine to very good. A small but fascinating collection, with answers ranging from thoughtful and inspirational to pithy and comical -- as itemized alphabetically… Read More

Wildly popular, pioneering early children's program (1947-1960) that established the genre and became a cultural phenomenon: Kean wrote more than 2,000 episodes and invented the show's many colorful characters (1947-55), coming up also with its famed "Cowabunga!" tagline, its theme song and every other song sung on the show (97 of them), while Smith was its long-time beloved host. Archive of letters and documents relating to copyright infringement issues as pursued by the "Howdy Doody" chief writer and its host in the 1990s and '00s. This fascinating and complex archive contains many hundreds of items -- dozens of original letters ranging from lengthy and meaty legal topics to personal matters to brief notes transmitting newspaper articles and countless photocopied book and other excerpts containing "Howdy Doody" content, the majority with handwritten addenda from Kean.Only a few letters and an inscribed 8" X 10" photograph hail from "Buffalo Bob" Smith, who died shortly after he and Kean retained a… Read More

New York: Carlton & Porter, 1858. Hardcover. 12mo. Green blind-embossed cloth with gilt spine lettering and pictorial stamping (rebacked with original spine laid down). 290pp, 2pp. Frontispiece, map, 14 wood engravings. Very good. Binding is a bit edgeworn and rubbed, though ornate spine gilt still bright; new endpapers (except front pastedown); text block tight and nice, though moderately age toned and with sporadic foxing. One of the most famous of Indian captivity narratives involves the Oatman family, Mormons who were attacked near Yuma, Arizona, while emigrating westward from Illinois by Native Americans (not Apache, but likely Western Yavapai), at which point the parents and four siblings were killed. Olive and younger sister Mary Ann (who later died from starvation) were taken captive, while brother Lorenzo was left for dead. Four years later, after being traded to the Mohaves, Olive with blue-tattooed chin was released at Fort Yuma. With Stratton's narrative in 1857 Olive and Lorenzo Oatman… Read More