Here is a great boxed set of the Robin Redbreast Series which was published in 1868-1869. This set of six books was published by Woolworth, Ainsworth and Company and co-published with A. S. Barnes
Dating this boxed set can be done with relative ease. The Crosby and Ainsworth publishing house was succeeded by Woolworth, Ainsworth & Company in 1868.By 1870 the Boston address for this publisher had changed to 32 Bromfield Street. Since the address noted on the box is 117 Washington Street in Boston , we know the boxed set was published in 1868 or 1869.
In 1871 the company closed its Boston office and was publishing with a New York and a Chicago address.
Not all is clear in terms of books of this series however. Although the title on the box is clearly The Robin Redbreast Series, the six books listed on the box and found within the box are not all from that series. Three of the books listed are from the Little Frankie Series. I am unsure how this mixup occurred. As you can see on a list of the books shown below, this box certainly includes the books from the two different series.
Both of these six volume series (Little Frankie and The Robin Redbreast Series) were initially published as boxed sets in 1860 by Crosby, Nichols, Lee & Co. Subsequently they were published by Crosby and Nichols and later by Crosby and Ainsworth before finally ending up being published by Woolworth, Ainsworth and Co. in 1868.A comprehensive biography of the author, Madeline Leslie , a pseudonym for Harriette Newell Baker Woods, can be found at Deidre Johnson's site: http://www.readseries.com/auth-les-wise/baker-bio.html .
Virtually all juvenile series from the 1850's to 1890's were published in boxes like the one shown here. Finding them is another matter.
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