Rare Book Monthly
Articles - February - 2004 Issue
(e)Bay Watch
Rare printed order was issued from Norwich, Ct, on February 20th, 1817. $26
Next there’s this:
“Collectible ALMANACK by NATHANIEL AMES for the year 1758. It was published by J. Draper, Boston, MA. The almanac measures approx. 4 x 6.25." The 14 inside pages contain moon phase charts "calculated for the meridian of Boston in New England." Also includes a 2 page article written by the author. This reference served as a model for Ben Franklin's "Poor Richard's Almanack." This item was purchased from the estate of a former history professor."
These early New England Almanacs have been selling for significant money. I’m probably willing to bid $75 for this but I won’t expect to get it. The prices for 18th century almanacs have been strong. This auction listing has a shipping calculator so I put in my zip code and learn I’ll be paying $3.85 for P&H if I’m the successful bidder. This auction doesn’t close for 9 hours and 23 minutes so I have plenty of time.
On the MatchMaker control panel there are three search options for other categories of eBay material we don’t yet automatically search: Ephemera, Manuscripts and Documents. Two or three times a week I read the listings in each of these sections to find material of interest. These lots I can only currently save to my eBay Wish List because they aren’t yet part of the ÆD record system. That makes me grateful to have the same capacity in MatchMaker mainly for books. I need it. If you find a run of ephemera there can be 20 interesting items from a single consignor.
Next there are two pieces of ephemera – both 1863 New York Fire Department Civil War Exemption documents. I recently read The Better Angel, the biography of Walt Whitman in the Civil War years, by Roy Morris, Jr. so I have a vivid sense of life in New York at the time, the risk of fire, and the occasional use of exemptions for local service to avoid military conscription. This piece fits but if I start collecting this stuff my wife is going to start referring to me by Archie Bunker’s nickname for his son-in-law. I’ll pass.
The next item is tough. I collect Poughkeepsie and this is very main stream for me: a 1837 almanac. But it is missing the front page. I’ll call it a research piece and bid up to $20. Shipping will be $2.50 if I get it. We’ll see
The next item is interesting but not exactly main stream. It’s a piece of ephemera: a Sing Sing Public Schools Faithful Study Certificate dated September 22, 1899. My brother would like this but if I give it to him I’ll have to frame it. The current bid is $7.60. Shipping will be $1.50. There are 7 hours and 40 minutes left. Now I’m thinking about The Big House with Robert Montgomery (1932), Angels With Dirty Faces with James Cagney(1938) and 20,000 Years at Sing Sing with Spencer Tracey (1932). Yes, this item is worth a try. For those who haven’t heard of Sing Sing, it's a very famous prison, located on the Hudson River, north of New York.
Next there is The Rhymes of Ironquill, a Topeka, Kansas imprint. A closer look shows this is the 10th edition which is kind of like finishing 10th in a horse race. A glance at ABE shows there are 40 copies available and 6 of them are the 1885 first editions. A book this common needs to be a signed first edition in pristine condition to be interesting. I won’t be bidding on this one.
