ephemera

Edgar Allan Poe Club Charter 1930

Being offered on eBay is a charter record of the First General Meeting of Edgar Allan Poe Club in 1930. According to the listing, this meeting was held at the Poe House in Philadelphia on September 26. 

The seller says, "In 1977, I bought the contents of the Poe House from Mrs. Frayne the long-time curator of the house. The fabulous collection of Poe Memorabilia was given to the Philadelphia Public Library in 1970, and the rest of the contents were willed to Mrs. Frayne. Mr. Richard Gimbel bought the rundown Poe House in 1928, to restore it and make a monument to Poe. He decided to contact the most illustrious literary figures in Philadelphia and proposed the formation of the Edgar Allan Poe Club.They agreed to meet at the House in 1930 and become Charter Members of the Club.  They each signed this document: 16 of them, plus the signatures of Mr. Gimbel and his wife. Two of my favorites are on here: Agnes Repplier the wonderful short story writer and Ellis Paxson Oberholtzer, one of the first historians to concentrate on the history of the PA   German culture. This charter was never on display in the House, but hung proudly on the wall of Mr. Gimbel's office."

Madison and Monroe’s Schooner Cruise

I imagine it was a blustery day on January 9, 1812, when James Madison and James Monroe set sail out of Massachusetts on the schooner Polly of Marblehead, captained by Daniel Thomas. The document being offered by an eBay seller doesn't describe the weather conditions, but the Mediterranean ship's paper is signed by the President and Secretary of State.

According to the seller, the vellum document has a scalloped top, an intact sunburst paper seal, folds, and dark writing.

As all will likely recall from High School history class, James Madison (1751-1836) was the 4^th President of the U.S. and the "Father of the Constitution." James Monroe (1758-1831) was the 5^th President.

Three Stooges Shemp Howard Paycheck Columbia Pictures

Filling the shoes of Curly had to be a thankless job for Shemp, but he helped The Three Stooges continue doing their fine work. And he did it for about $500 bucks a week as you can plainly see in his Columbia Pictures paystub from 5/31/47, which is being offered on eBay.

The paystub's seller provides a little back-story, "Shemp was in the Stooges from the beginning and then went on to make movies with Abbot & Costello, WC Fields, John Wayne, and many more, but returned to the Stooges after Curly Howard died from a stroke. Shemp continued with the Stooges until his death in 1955. He made more than 250 movies and was quite the family man."

I was a regular Stooges viewer throughout my youth, and I continue to think of them as one of the pillars of 20th century comedy. Shemp deserved every penny!

John Keats Gravestone Rubbing

"Twelve summers ago as an art history student in Rome Italy," says the eBay seller offering a graphite rubbing of Keat's gravestone, "I used the Protestant cemetery as a quite respite from the hectic city. I was enchanted by the text which read: 'This Grave contains all that was Mortal of a Young English Poet, Who on his Death Bed in the Bitterness of his Heart at the Malicious Power of his Enemies, Desired these Words to be engraven on his Tomb Stone - Here lies One Whose Name was writ in Water - Feb 24 1821.'"

According to Wikipedia, during his very short life, Keat's work received constant critical attacks from periodicals of the day, but his posthumous influence on poets such as Alfred Tennyson and Wilfred Owen would be immense. The poetry of Keats was characterised by elaborate word choice and sensual imagery, notably in a series of odes that were his masterpieces, and which remain among the most popular poems in English literature. The letters of Keats, which expound on his aesthetic theory of "negative capability", are among the most celebrated by any writer.

Here's a snippet of Keat's poetry:

Sign of the enchanter's death;
Bane of every wicked spell;
Silencer of dragon's yell.
Alas! thou this wilt never do:
Thou art an enchantress too,
And wilt surely never spill
Blood of those whose eyes can kill.

Two Doctors Correspond for 50 years

This box of letters sent between two doctors over the course of 50 years is being offered by a seller on eBay. The letters were sent between a doctor in Toronto and a doctor in Sandborn, NY. The letters were written, according to the seller, from 1900 to 1950.

Perhaps these correspondences, depending on what they contain, would make for a fascinating book.

Smith & Wesson 357 Magnum Brochure 1936

So, the best line I ever heard about the 357, aside from Clint's famous movie quote, was in a little-known book about a guy living in the Alaskan wilderness. The savvy Alaskan says of those trying to stop a grizzly with a 357 should file down the sight. Why? Because it'll hurt less when the bear shoves the pistol up their rectum.

And that brings us to this brochure, which is being offered by a friendly eBay seller. I don't believe the brochure includes the handy tip about the bear, however.

Feared Trouble From Bath Man

Gladys Towner married Grover C. Ashley around 1927.  According to the news clippings, he was in and out of prison several times previously—but this time he allegedly killed a man for refusal to pay a $4.00 bill. This according to the seller of an estate lot which includes items from the notorious, feared Bath Man, Grover C. Ashley.

Grover was arraigned on first degree murder charges, says the eBay seller of the Bath Man's estate ephemera, "but I cannot find out what happened in the case. One of the articles claims Ashley was also being accused of assault on Gladys. This may explain why he is not living with Gladys and their son, as of the 1930 census. However, one of the photos is identified as Gladys and Grover and dated 1934."

Gladys ended up marrying Thomas Van Etten, sometime after, and she passed away in 1999 at age 89. Thomas died in 1972.

Whatever became of alleged-killer Grover "Bath Man" Ashley? Maybe the there are more clues in the estate lot of ephemera goodies offered on eBay?

Cornell University Letter to Founder

The Lewis Wayne Gallery is offering a letter on eBay from 1863 written by Paul J. Cornell to his Uncle Ezra, one of the founders of Cornell University.

Cornell University formally opened on October 7, 1868, as the federal land-grant institution of New York State under the 1862 Morrill Act, according to the University's press office, signed by President Abraham Lincoln. The bill provided for a grant of federal land to each state, which could sell the land and use the proceeds to help build and operate its new college. The land-grant colleges were required to teach branches of learning related to agriculture, military tactics, and the mechanic arts, as well as classical studies, so that a broad segment of the American population could obtain a liberal, practical education related to their daily lives.

I, too, attended a land-grant college in Illinois, which happens to be the oldest public university in the state. And legend has it that Honest Abe had his hand in creating it!

Pasteur Rabies Vaccine Test Letter

Two years before successfully using the Rabies vaccine on human, Louis Pasteur (1822-1895) wrote this letter dated August, 31, 1883, concerning the testing of the vaccine.

According to the eBay seller of the signed letter says: "My dear Eugene, I don't have the date of the day where you trepane [bore a hole into the bone] the rabbits of the 19th passage. I no longer have the date where you trepane the guinea pig of the 6th passage, that you told me about in your letter of the 30th, since this morning. I'm going to write once again to Mr. Andre. It is well known, I believe, having written to you that you will inoculate 2 dogs by trepanation and 2 dogs under the skin with the heart blood of a rabbit of the 19th passage group and equally the small one by trepanation and with the same blood. Use a good healthy quantity of this blood. Hello and good health, L. Pasteur. I will wait on my return for the book in the national library."

The listing goes on to say that Pasteur created the first rabies vaccine by growing the virus in rabbits, and then weakening it by drying the affected nerve tissue; he experimented with his vaccine in dogs.

It was first successfully tested in 1885, when nine-year-old Joseph Meister was bitten by a rabid dog. Pasteur treated the boy with his rabies vaccine and it successful. Pasteur was one of the world's greatest scientists, making major contributions in chemistry, medicine, and industry. While his work in chemistry had already made him famous by the time he was twenty-six, he is best known today for his work in medicine. His discovery that many diseases are spread by bacteria has saved countless lives, as has vaccination, which was also developed by Pasteur. Pasteurization, the process of killing germs during preparation of certain foods, was also developed by Pasteur, and is credited for saving both the silk and wine industries in France.

Denver Colorado Namesake Letter 1856

A letter written by George H. Ensign to James W. Denver in January, 1856, with a San Francisco California Free Cancellation Frank on the envelope, is the latest piece of interesting ephemera to go on the eBay auction block.

According to the listing, George H. Ensign was a noted San Francisco real estate broker and the founder of the Spring Valley Water Works, which was the beginning of the water utilities of San Francisco. James W. Denver was a Democrat to the Thirty-fourth Congress from March 4, 1855, to March 3, 1857. He also became the Governor of the Territory of Kansas in June, 1857, and the city of Denver was named in his honor.

The letter is rather interesting: Mr. Ensign is requesting that Mr. Denver send him the Exploration Surveys of the Pacific Railroad, which was the initial survey for the Transcontinental Railroad, which would be completed on May 10, 1869.