Details
Creator Library Company of Philadelphia.
Title Library Company of Philadelphia scrapbook [graphic] /
Publisher [Philadelphia]
Publisher PA. Philadelphia. 1936-1945
Date [ca. 1865-ca. 1971, bulk ca. 1936-ca. 1945]
Physical Description ca. 300 clippings, ca. 100 items, 44 photographic prints, 5 photomechanical prints, 2 prints in 1 scrapbook : letterpress, gelatin silver, albumen, platinum, etching ; scrapbook 58 x 44 cm. (22.5 x 17.25 in.)
Description Scrapbook containing newspaper clippings, photographs, ephemera and prints predominantly issued between the 1930s and 1970s documenting exhibitions, loans, collections, events and the history of the Library Company. Clippings include newspaper articles about a loan of American political cartoons to the Toledo Museum (1936); exhibitions commemorating the centenary of librettist W.S. Gilbert (1936); the tercentenary of Swedish Settlement (1938); and the library's African American history collection (1971). Columns also describe the presentation of the Christopher Sower library (1909); the return in 1876 of a book 99 years overdue since the American Revolution (1938); the demolition of the Library's Juniper and Locust streets building for a parking lot (1939); and the vandalism of the former Ridgway Building at 901-933 Broad Street (1969). Photographs predominantly depict the exteriors and reading rooms of the library buildings at Fifth and Library Streets, Juniper and Locust Streets, and Broad Street (Ridgway Building). Other photographs include a series of views from the 1939 unveiling ceremony of the James Logan memorial (to be erected in Fairmount Park) on the steps of the Ridgway Branch. Ephemera includes invitations (several from The Women's Committee), brochures, catalogs, announcements and placards related to library events; bulletins and pamphlets describing collections; dues notices and book plates; the variant 1884 and 1906 "Rules of the Library Company"; an off-print of the 1882 Louise Stockton entry in "A Sylvan City..." about "The Old Philadelphia Library"; and a 1961 citation from the city recognizing the library as a "Philadelphia first."
Notes Title supplied by cataloger.
Cut outs of the seal and motto of Library Company from bookplate pasted on title page.
Some contents annotated with dates and typewritten descriptions.
Several loose photographs removed and rehoused as "Library Company of Philadelphia Scrapbook Photographs Collection" [P.2010.17]. Contains a ca. 1865 portrait of library donor John A. McAllister misidentified as librarian Lloyd P. Smith, a ca. 1935 portrait of librarian George Abbot, and interior and exterior views of the library buildings, including artifacts, at Fifth and Library Streets, Juniper and Locust Streets, and Broad Street (Ridgway Building).
Cataloging funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (PW-506-19-10), 2010-2012.
Description revised 2022.
Access points revised 2022.
Typewritten index inserted in volume.
Biographical / historical note The Library Company of Philadelphia, America’s first successful lending library and oldest cultural institution, was founded in 1731 by Benjamin Franklin as a subscription library supported by its shareholders. Until the 1850s it was the largest public library in America. It was transformed into a research library in the 1950s.
Subject Abbot, George Maurice, -- Portraits.
McAllister, John A. (John Allister), 1822-1896 -- Portraits.
Library Company of Philadelphia -- Buildings.
Library Company of Philadelphia -- History.
Library Company of Philadelphia -- People.
Geographic subject Broad Street (Philadelphia, Pa.) -- South -- 901-933.
Fifth Street (Philadelphia, Pa.) -- South -- 100 block.
Locust Street (Philadelphia, Pa.) -- 1300 block.
Genre Albumen prints -- 1860-1890.
Clippings -- 1930-1980.
Ephemera -- 1880-1980.
Etchings -- 1910-1940.
Letterpress works -- 1930-1940.
Gelatin silver prints -- 1910-1940.
Photomechanical prints -- 1920-1940.
Platinum prints -- 1930-1940.
Portrait photographs -- 1860-1940.
Scrapbooks -- 1880-1980.
Location Library Company of Philadelphia| Print Department| *albums (flat) [P.2010.17]
Library Company of Philadelphia| Print Department| Library Company of Philadelphia Scrapbook Photographs Collection [P.2010.17]
Accession number P.2010.17