Box 58

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A collection of four photographs of noted American clergyman and abolitionist Henry Ward Beecher and, presumably, two other members of his family. Three of the photos are in a cardboard frame: two are labeled “Mrs. Stuart, Ida, Mother” and “Henry Ward Beecher” while the third, a photograph of a woman in a patterned dress, is unlabelled. A fourth loose photograph of Beecher himself is also included.

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8 letters from American journalist James O’Donnell Bennett to a Mr. Hill, written on Chicago Record-Herald letterhead. Contents are variable but include references to the purchase of old prints and portraits, as well as Bennett sending Hill tickets to a number of shows. Undated.

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A softcover notebook belonging to American writer Henry Beston, and containing a number of names and addresses of people met on a trip to England in 1929, as well as two short reminiscences from the same.

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Correspondence between American author Catherine Drinker Bowen and Robert D. Franklin, Assistant Librarian at the Free Library of Philadelphia, and his wife. There are 3 letters: 2 are an exchange between Bowen and Franklin regarding her research on Revolutionary-era America, especially Philadelphia mayor James Logan, dated 1950, while the third is an undated letter to Franklin's wife regarding her recently-published book on John Adams.

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Three letters to various recipients from British poet Robert Bridges. The contents generally relate to his writing, from responding to comments on new work to discussing proofs. One undated, others 1922 and 1926.

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Three letters from British writer Frederick Britten Austin regarding the publication of various books and essays. Dated 1925.

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A letter from British archaeologist and printer Conant Broadribb to his brother, historian and archaeologist Gerald Broadribb. The contents pertain to several medieval manuscripts, images of which are included, that Conant suggests may relate to their shared interest in Book History, typography, and printing. Dated 1949.

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12 letters and postcards in the hand of Irish clergyman and writer Stopford Brooke, with 3 photographs of the same, two of which are signed. The correspondence, addressed to a variety of recipients including Brooke’s mother and sister, is on various topics, ranging from personal news and responses to invitations to discussion of his and other literary works. Dated between 1877 and 1915.

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Six pieces of correspondence in the hand of American poet, journalist, and editor William Cullen Bryant. Contents are general, though one contains verses in Spanish, and one is written in French. Dated in the 1850s and 60s.

Scope and Contents 8 letters in the hand of British academic James Bryce written between 1878 and 1912. One letter is addressed to a Mr. King, while the remaining 7 are to Charles W. Eliot, president of Harvard University (1869-1909). The contents range from the personal – he announces his engagement to future wife Marion Ashton and discusses a trip to Chicago – to academics including Bryce’s views on English academia and the revisions he is making to his magnum opus, The American Commonwealth, as well as...

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A collection of 17 letters, notes, and fragments in the hand of James Silk Buckingham, British author and journalist, dated between 1826 and 1848, along with two printed portraits of the same. The recipients and contents are varied, ranging from various lectures, the sale of a periodical, a speech given by his son on temperance and so forth.

Scope and Contents A single leaf of paper containing what appears to be a draft of the poem “For the First Page of the Album” by H.C. Bunner, later published in his Airs from Arcady and Elsewhere (1884). The poem is signed and dated September 10th, 1883 – a date that also appears in the printed edition. The text of the poem is identical to that found in Airs with the exception of the first line, which has some small differences. The paper, which is now somewhat yellowed, was pasted onto a newer piece at some...

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A typescript of the first five chapters of what appears to be an untitled epic poem about two children traveling in Paradise, by American poet Danford Barney. Each chapter has a précis in prose, and is annotated in both pen and pencil, including notes for illustrations. A note in pencil in the upper margin of the first chapter reads “By Danford Barney. Illustrated by Lorraine Combs. about 1925”, though there is no evidence the work was ever published.

Scope and Contents A French document on paper, 8 pages bound with parchment thongs, dated 11 October 1696. While the type of document is unclear, the surnames Bellefon and Mauleon appear multiple times, and the name Bonnard appears at the end, possibly a notary. A note following the text marks it “Coppie” in the same hand as the main text, and a later stamp in the upper lefthand corner of the first page indicates that the document once belonged to the Archives de l’Ordre de Mathe, a Catholic lay religious...

Scope and Contents A typed letter from Carlyle S. Baer, then Secretary of the American Society of Bookplate Collectors and Designers, dated July 18th, 1922. The letter has no addressee, and appears to be a document Baer sent out to other collectors in order to facilitate the exchange of copies of rare plates: it offers prints of plates by Welsh etcher Bertha Gorst (1873-1938) and American author and designer Arthur Howard Noll (1855-1930), and leaves a blank where Baer could insert a request of his own – in...

Scope and Contents An account book or ledger dating between November 1844 and December 1879, with entries not always in order. The transactions are for a variety of goods and services and are paid both in cash and by trade. Over time the hand becomes significantly shakier, until it is difficult to decipher. An inverted pencil inscription on the rear pastedown reads “B.P. Smith Fairmount Springs Luzerne Co. Pa” in what appears to be a child’s hand: it is unlikely this is the author of the book, but many of the...

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A single letter to Oxford academic John Bryson from his younger brother Edwin, dated 1965. Included with the letter is correspondence between Scheetz and Edwin, including a photograph of a portrait of John.

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Two letters from George Byam-Shaw to two recipients (“Joe” and “Susie”) dated 1940 from France. Contents are chatty and personal. This is likely George Byam-Shaw, son of British actor and director Glen Byam Shaw (1904-1986), and grandson of the noted artist Byam Shaw (1872-1919) – or possibly Glen’s brother Major George Byam-Shaw who died 21st May, 1940, a few days after the later letter was written.

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Two letters sent from American poet Wallace Bruce to his brother. The first, dated 1871, provides an update on Bruce’s personal life, and the second, dated 1877, relates to a financial exchange.

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Two letters addressed to American naval commander James Barron from two separate correspondents, one dated 1831 and the other 1835.