Civil War Presentation Copy – “The Humourist’s Own Book” / SOLD

Description

Civil War Presentation Copy – “The Humourist’s Own Book”
(Leavitt & Allen, New York, mid-19th century)

Octavo, blind-embossed brown cloth boards with ornamental border design. Title page reads: The Humourist’s Own Book: A Cabinet of Original and Selected Anecdotes, Bons Mots, Sports of Fancy, and Traits of Character: Intended to Furnish Occasion for Reflection as Well as Mirth. By the Author of The Young Man’s Own Book. Published by Leavitt & Allen, 379 Broadway, New York.

This example is especially notable for its Civil War-era presentation inscription on the front endpaper in beautiful period script: “Presented to Mr. Joe S. Gardiner by his uncle, Provost Marshal Office, Milwaukee Wis. December 8th, 1864.” The association with the Provost Marshal’s Office during the final months of the Civil War gives this otherwise popular humor anthology a direct wartime provenance. The Provost Marshal’s Office was central to Union enlistment, recruitment, and draft administration, and presentation pieces from that department are seldom encountered. Condition: Covers show modest wear and fraying at extremities; interior with scattered toning and occasional spotting. Binding sound. An appealing Civil War presentation volume tying a commonplace antebellum humor book to the wartime service environment of the Union home front in Wisconsin.

Inventory Number: HIS 277