Americans

Charles Gibson (1867-1944) is one of the best known illustrators of the Gilded Age primarily due to his creation, the Gibson Girl. As an illustrator he became talented in depicting relationships between men and women and submitted illustrations to such magazines as Harper's Weekly, Life, and Harper's Monthly. In 1890 he introduced a modernized beautiful female character with upswept hair, fashionable clothes, and imbued with independence and glamor. The Gibson Girl attained nationwide celebrity and had songs and plays written about her. Even today, her name is still easily recognized. The Americans is one of several books that were published at the turn of the century with illustrations featuring the Gibson Girl. The Smithsonian Libraries has over a dozen of them - however this book is particularly special because it is a limited edition signed both by the publisher and by Charles Gibson himself.