1897 Selections: John Ruskin RARE Howe Memorial Boston Line Type Perkins Blind

Edwin Ginn

Published by The Howe Memorial Press, Perkins Institution and Mass. School for the Blind

About this Item

Selections from Ruskin. Containing four lectures on Books and Reading, War, and Work. Selected from "Sesame and Lilies" and the "Crown of Wild Olive." By Edwin Ginn. With a Sketch of Ruskin's Life. By D.H.M. Electrotyped. Boston: The Howe Memorial Press, Perkins Institution and Mass. School for the Blind, 1897. RARE BOSTON LINE TYPE BOOK! 133 p. Half-leather marbled binding measures 14.5 x 11.5", 4to.

In fair condition. Boards normally scuffed at edges and worn/bumped at corners. Head and tail of spine lacking with exposed binding; leather spine desiccated with red-rot. Hinges cracked - boards attached via cording only. Ex-library bookplate found on front paste-down: "The Hartford Public Library". Normal toning in margins; some sporadic age-staining. Some leaves are brittle with some tearing at fore-edges. Ex-library card catalog envelope pasted-in on rear paste-down. Binding intact; hinges fragile. Please see photos and ask questions, if any, before purchasing.

In the year before Perkins opened its doors to students in the autumn of 1832, Samuel Gridley Howe scoured North America and Europe to create a small library for his students. However, he did not find as many books as he had hoped for, so Howe decided to create them himself. Within a few years, Howe developed an embossed alphabet called Boston Line Type. The new tactile writing system was compact and had few confusing flourishes, unlike others in use. Next, he hired a printer, Stephen Preston Ruggles, to design a press that could produce books in Boston Line Type. The Acts of the Apostles was the first book printed at Perkins in 1835. Other books published that year were Baxter?s Call, The Blind Child?s Spelling Book, The Dairy Man?s Daughter, and An Introductory Reading Book for Children. The press at Perkins was named Howe Memorial Press in 1882. Perkins officially switched to braille after 1907.

This book can ONLY be found in Perkins Boston Line Type books Collection inventory.

VERY RARE! Published in the last decade before the Braille switch.

FORN-SHELF-0694-UPSTAIRS-XX-2603-HK3474.

Seller Inventory # FORN-SHELF-0694-UPSTAIRS-XX-2603-HK3474

Bibliographic Details

• Title: 1897 Selections: John Ruskin RARE Howe Memorial Boston Line Type Perkins Blind
• Publisher: The Howe Memorial Press, Perkins Institution and Mass. School for the Blind
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: Fair