D. Lothrop and Co. Trade Card

Here is another piece of ephemera from the Lothrop book publishing firm. Perfect for this time of the year, it is a Christmas card which advertises a book sale.

Many of the book publishers of this era also sold books to make ends meet. With this card Lothrop announces that it will no longer be in the retail business.

D. Lothrop & co. was at the Franklin Street (on the corner of Franklin and Hawley) address between 1875 and 1887. Prior to that Lothrop was on Cornhill Street. Although I cannot be certain, I believe this card dates from 1886. That is the year when Lothrop advertisements changed from "Publishers and Booksellers" to say only " Publishers".

Estes and Lauriat Trade Card-Zig Zag Series

The prototypical travelogue series for children was the Zig Zag Series written by Hezekiah Butterworth published by Estes and Lauriat. It may not have been the best written or the most accurate but it appears that it outsold the competition by a lot. Butterworth , his books and his series will be discussed in the future. This post is about the trade card.

Estes and Lauriat published the first three Zig Zag books in 1880 (Europe), 1881 (Classic Lands) and 1882 ( in the Orient). In 1882 it printed trade cards advertising the first three books of the series. There is a card for each book that features it individually on the front of the card.

On the reverse of the card the three Zig Zag books in addition to a Knockabout Club series books are advertised. There is also a trade card that shows the Knockabout book.

Each of the books were published in illuminated board covers or cloth with gilt designs. The trade cards show the former cover.

I have seen more Estes and Lauriat trade cards featuring books than I have any other 19th century publisher.


Here is a picture of the book featured on the trade card.

Lothrop Trade Card -- Magazines

Here is a trade card from D. Lothrop and Company. Lothrop advertised its
five magazines with this card. As you can see , each magazine is designed for a different group of readers. From older juveniles to babies, Lothrop has it covered.


The magazines for older children were great vehicles for Lothrop to showcase some of their authors especially Pansy.

Shown below is a copy of Babyland which was the magazine designed for the youngest readers.







The copy here is from February, 1890. At 5 cents it clearly was reasonably priced (even for 1890 dollars).

Of great interest to me are the advertisements. In a 2009 reader like this the ads would be for baby food, toys and other items for toddlers




















In this magazine however this is clearly not the case.
Here is a representative page of ads. Hospital remedies, Dr. Schenk's Pulmonic Syrup and others would not seem to be verey exciting for children. Other ads not shown for an Autoharp , hair curlers and engines are also not for kids. This is a curious disconnect that is hard to explain.

Lee and Shepard Trade Card

In the 19th century book publishers advertised their works in many printed forms. One commonly used was the trade card. Here is a great example from the 1880's. Edward Greey (1835-1888) wrote several travel books published by Lee and Shepard. First in the Trophies of Travel Series three of the six books were by Greey. Young Americans in Japan (1881), Wonderful City of Tokio(1882) and The Bear Worshippers of Yezo(1883)

Later these three books with new names- Young Americans in Japan, Y.A. in Yezo, Y.A. in Tokio were republished as the Young Americans in Japan Series. All of the books highlighted the adventures of the Jewett family and their travels in the far east.

The travelogue books were common and giant sellers for a number of book publishers in this era. The books were generally oversized (9 x 7 ) and were published with illuminated pictorial covers as well as in cloth with gilt trim and decorations. Other examples include the Zigzag books, the Knockabout Club, and the Boy Travellers.

These elegant books were well bound with numerous illustrations. Some examples of Greey's Lee and Shepard books are below.


















Charles E. Brown , a Boston publisher, included the three Greey books in his 1892 Roundabout Series.

Greey wrote other non-series books published by Lee and Shepard. The Golden Lotus and Other Stories (1882) as well as A Captive of Love (1886).