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Hard cover bound volume, 4to., ex-library, in three-quarter calf over embossed diced-style gray cloth-covered boards, the spine with four raised bands triple-ruled with gilt, with title and year to the second and fourth compartments. Marbled endpapers with engraved library label. Printed by Edward O. Jenkins, 114 Nassau Street, NY. With Index, and numbered continuously, 572pp. with the plates unnumbered. There are no colored fashion plates (but 4 seasonal black and white plates) or other chromolithographed "extras" as found in earlier editions. As usual the edition features poetry, articles on non-fiction topics, such as patent medicine and medical advances, book and art reviews, and short stories, some illustrated, of travel, romance, the immigrant experience in America, and biographical sketches. Other contributors not mentioned above include Fanny Forrester, Mrs. Lydia Sigourney, Henry G. Lee, Mrs. C.H. Butler, Mrs. E.S. Swift and Miss Maria J. McIntosh.**CONDITION: Very Good. Front board sunned. Light marks and sunning to spine. Wear to corners and joints. Inside, front hinge is cracked, with a superficial, minor split at rear endpaper. Old ink signature to ffep. Perforated library stamp to title page, with date stamp to gutter of Index. Card pocket and an unused stamp label to rear e.p. Pages are generally quite clean with the odd bit of finger soiling. Moderately age toned. Foxing seen to verso of plates and the pages facing them. Item is otherwise well preserved and sturdy. CONTENTS include: "A Farewell Editorial" and several travel articles from the magazine's departing founding editor John Inman, who manned the editorial helm of "The Columbian" from 1844 -1848. New editor STEPHEN M. CHESTER, a former contributor, debuts in these pages and commits to publishing fewer fashion spreads in favor of additional highbrow steel engravings and mezzotints, with representative artists here including Britain's THOMAS ALLOM, W.H. BARTLETT and BENJAMIN WEST. ***OF SPECIAL INTEREST, the poetry includes EDGAR ALLAN POE's "To ----- ----- -----," (p. 138) commonly said to refer to his super-fan, MRS. FRANCES S. OSGOOD (1811-1850) of Boston. Poe's work is under his own name here. The devoted Mrs.Osgood has at least one poetic contribution as well, with "Stanzas for Music." (p. 116). Both works appear as part of the March 1848 issue. While Mrs. Osgood's relationship with Poe has been variously described as a platonic literary fascination (and one at least initially supported by her husband,) and mainly in the form of adulating poetry, there were injudicious letters written as well, apparently. Another contributor, the poet and author Mrs. E.F. ELLET (1818-1877) instigated gossip about Osgood's letters to Poe which landed the latter in hot water with his wife, Osgood's husband and her brother. Other literary figures of the day including Boston's Margaret Fuller appealed directly to Poe to return the supposed letters. All this took place in 1845 and it is perhaps a testament to the damage done to the reputations of all those involved that this New York magazine is regurgitating the matter three years later! See Mrs. Ellets two short stories: "Marry in Your Own Sphere (p.57), "Eugene Le Mars" (p. 145), and the poem "The Prism, the Flower and the Sunbeam, (p. 152). "The Columbian Magazine" ceased publication the following year, 1849. Please also see our bound annuals for these issues of 1845, 1846 and 1847. (AMJ)
Ref: PER 9801
$175.00