The Homes of America

Cover of The Homes of America
Adoption Amount: $1,350
Category: Preserve for the Future
Location: National Museum of American History Library

The homes of America

By Martha J. Lamb. New York: D. Appleton and Company, c.1879.

Described by the Literary World Magazine of 1880 as a “superb holiday volume” and printed on toned paper with a gold deckle edge, this volume is illustrated with engravings of many well-known, and not so well-known, American homes. Not surprisingly, it features a detailed description of the White House, as well as an image of the presidential mansion as the book’s frontispiece. The homes of some Founding Fathers are also highlighted, as are homes of writers like Emerson, Longfellow, and Washington Irving. It even has a section on the childhood home of Louisa May Alcott, which was the inspiration for the March family’s home in her book Little Women.

Condition and Treatment: 

This book contains illustrations of 103 homes from across America. It has a green cloth binding decorated with printed red and black ink depicting a cottage in the woods. There is also gold stamping for the title and additional decoration. The sewing has failed and many pages are loose within the book. Many of these loose pages have suffered damage to their edges and will need repair. The book will need to be resewn and tears to the case along the spine will need to be repaired before the text is put back in the case. Once these repairs are complete the book will be digitized and a bespoke enclosure constructed for it.

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