The Shaw Collection has a large variety of publications that could be described as gift books, literary annuals, or children’s annuals.  The Forget Me Not, first published in England in 1823, was thought to be the first “literary annual”.  It was published in November of 1822 with the subtitle “a Christmas and New Year’s Present for 1823”.  Beautifully bound with cloth spine, glazed paper boards, and decorative titles, it came in a slipcase.  It was instantly popular and was joined by several new titles every year.  By 1832, there were sixty-three separate annual titles being published in England.  In 1826, the first American annual, Atlantic Souvenir, appeared.

        The bindings of these annual offerings became increasingly lavish, going from glazed paper to embossed silk to embossed and inlaid leather. New methods of machine binding came about at the same time as heavy demand for the annuals peaked.  At first, the size of the volumes was small, adding to their gift like quality.   As time passed, their size increased as did their ornate decoration.  Inside, these books often had flowery borders on each page and illustrations in the form of engravings or colored plates.  An engraved or colored inscription plate was usually included for the donor to inscribe to the recipient.

        From a literary standpoint, the contents were prose and poetry with no hint of impropriety.  Many well- respected authors of the time contributed works to these annuals, including Dickens, Byron, Southey, Scott, Wordsworth, Lamb, Scott, and the Brownings.  In America, authors included Hawthorne, Poe, Whittier, Emerson, and Longfellow.  Artists whose work illustrated these volumes included Turner, Landseer, Eastlake, Cheney, and Sartain.

        Many of these annuals were geared for the younger reader.  The Youth’s Companion appeared in 1827.  Standards for both writing and illustration were high in these publications.   Many of them, such as St. Nicholas, Boy’s Own Magazine, and Girl’s Own Magazine were weekly or monthly children’s publications that, at the end of the year, were gathered into annual cumulations, nicely bound, and marketed as gift books.

        The era of the gift book was not long.  Most were gone by the late 1800’s.  The children’s annuals lasted longer, some well into the 1930’s and 40’s.

        A site with some interesting information on Children's Annuals is at the Collecting Books and Magazines page.

Gift Books, Literary Annuals, Children’s Annuals, and other Literary Serials on display in the Shaw Case:

Shelf 1

1.  Title:         The Elf : a sequence of the seasons.
Published:      <London : Old Bourne Press>  autumn 1902-winter 1904; new ser. no. 1-<3>; 1905.
Call Number:  (Shaw)  AP 4 .E34

Shelf 2

2.  Title:           Sunday reading for the young.
Published:       London : Wells, Gardner, Darton, 18??-
Call Number:    (Shaw)   AP 201 .S757

3.  Title:           Blackie's children's annual.
Published:       London : Blackie and Son, <1904-Began with 1st year, issued 1904.
Call Number:   (Shaw) AP 201 .B553

4.  Title:           St. Nicholas : an illustrated magazine for young folks.
Published:       New York : Scribner, 1873-1943. v. 1-70; Nov. 1873-June 1943.
Call Number:   (Shaw) AP 201 .S3

Shelf 3

5.  Title:           Aunt Judy's Christmas volume.
Published:       London : G. Bell.
Call Number:   (Shaw)   AP 200 .A952

6.  Title:           The Chatterbox.
Published:       <London, s.n.> Began with Dec. 1, 1866 issue.
Call Number:    (Shaw) PR 1098 .C47

7.  Title:           The Child's companion, and juvenile instructor.
Published:        London : Religious Tract Society, 1824-Vol. 1, no. 1 (Jan. 1824)-
Call Number:    (Shaw)  AP 200 .C638

8.  Title:           The yellow book.
Published:        London : E. Mathews & J. Lane ; Boston : Copeland & Day, <1894-1897>Vol. 1 (Apr. 1894)-v. 13 (Apr. 1897).
Call Number:    (Shaw)  AP 4 .Y4

Shelf 4

9. Title:           Fisher's drawing room scrap book.
Published:       London : Fisher, Son, and Jackson, 1832-<1851><1832>-1852.
Call Number:   (Shaw)  AY 11 .F4

10. Title:         Household words / conducted by Charles Dickens.
Published:       London : Bradbury and Evans, 1850-1859. Vol. 1 (Mar. 30, 1850)-v. 19 (May 28, 1859).
Call Number:   (Shaw) AP 4 .H9

11. Title:          Friendship's offering of sentiment and mirth.
Published:       London : Smith, Elder, 1844. 1844.
Call Number:    (Shaw)  AY13 .F8

12. Title:          The Rose of Sharon : a religious souvenir.
Published:       Boston, Mass. : A. Tompkins and B. B. Mussey, 1840-1840-
Call Number:   (Shaw) AY11 .R6

13. Title:          Christian souvenir: an offering for Christmas and the New Year ...
Published:        Boston : H.B. Williams, 1843-Ceased with 1844?
Call Number:    (Shaw)   AY11 .C6

14. Title:          The Juvenile forget me not.
Published:        London : N. Hailles, Fred. Westley and A. H. Davis
Call Number:    (Shaw) AY13 .J8

Shelf 5

15. Title:          The Girl's own annual.
Published:        London : The "Leisure Hour" Office, 1880-Vol. 1 (1880)-
Call Number:    (Shaw)  AP 201 .G57

16. Title:          Sunshine.
Published:       London : W. Macintosh No. 1 (Jan. 1862)- Ceased in 1921.  Cf. National union catalog, pre-1956 imprints.
Call Number:   (Shaw)  AP200 .S98

17. Title:          The Boy's own paper.
Published:       <London : Leisure Hour Office, 1879-Vol. 1, no. 1 (Jan. 18, 1879)- Ceased publication with: Vol. 89, no. 2 in Feb. 1967?
Call Number:    (Shaw) AP 201 .B72

Return to New and Recent Exhibits.
Return to Special Collections.

dhr
12/14/99