 Little Landscapes of Daintiness and ElegancebyLaine Farley
These three bookmarks illustrate a Janus-like view of the past year with a fall scene and a Christmas greeting and an anticipation of going forward into spring with an Easter theme. The appeal of these bookmarks is not so much about the seasonal themes as it is the quality of the engravings. The scenes are also unusual and non-traditional, at least in terms of modern expectations. While they are all very different, there is a similar style and presentation common to all of them. The shadowed half circle, simple on the stag bookmark, combined with an angled line on the Easter bookmark, and very ornate and architectural on the Christmas bookmark, is almost like a trademark effect. They all feature wildlife and have scenes that suggest something intriguing in the distance—a foggy wood, a seaside home, or a romantic castle. Since they all have a date, publisher, place and two even have a series number, I thought it would be easy to find out more about their origin and publisher history. My research turned up more questions than answers, leaving me wondering why such fine work was so difficult to document. It was easy to find a brief history of the company in Boston and Bostonians, New York: American Publishing and Engraving Co., 1894, p. 193 which stated that the company was founded by Warren J. Robinson in about 1876, succeeded by Robinson and Stephenson, and organized into the present company at 91 Oliver Street in 1892 with Francis H. Raymond as president and Robinson as treasurer and general manager. There is even a portrait of Warren J. Robinson. Then I located an ad in the Harvard Index, Harvard University, 1881, p. 146 that stated Robinson Engraving succeeded Brett Engraving Co. and was located at 25 Arch St. It was certainly possible for the company to have a different location, but why wasn’t Brett listed as part of the company’s genealogy? Having no luck in locating more about Brett, I continued to look for more about Robinson and found a brief mention in The American Stationer, v. 23, 17 May 1888, p. 969. It stated that George L. Forristall, “a well-known Bostonian, has become financially interested in the business of Robinson Engraving Co. “ The article revealed that Forristall was the treasurer and A. W. Robinson was the president, and went on to describe their line of souvenir and menu cards, steel plate folders, dance orders, and wedding engraving. It mentioned that the calendar line for 1889 would have very pretty designs. Were A. W. and Warren J. Robinson brothers or father and son? Again, why no mention of these people in the first article about the company? Directories can often provide clues about business history and sure enough, Caspar’s directory of the American book, news and stationery trade wholesale and retail in the United States and Canada, 1889, p. 439 listed Robinson Engraving Co. with A. W. Robinson and George L. Forristall “since 1880, est. 1872) with a location of 32 Hawley St. This was even more puzzling, however. Did the establishment date of 1872 mean that the two Robinsons had parted ways sometime between then and 1876 when Warren was credited with establishing his company? Another directory, the Boston Almanac and Business Directory, v. 56, 1891, p. 29 listed under Engravers both Robinson Engraving Co. at 32 Hawley as well as Robinson and Stephenson at 91 Oliver. This evidence confirmed there were two different companies but provided no other clues about their relationship. An 1890 Boston city directory gave similar information for Robinson and Stephenson with the addition of listing Thomas C. Stephenson as the other business partner. In the Documents of the City of Boston, v. 1, 1893, a description of a fire at 32 Hawley St. listed the companies in the building and their losses. Robinson Engraving lost about $4,000 but was insured for about $15,000 so this was probably only a minor setback in their business. As an interesting aside, the website called The Library History Buff notes that “During the early years of the American Library Association, the headquarters of the Association was wherever the unpaid elected secretary of ALA was located. From 1876 to 1890 this was Melvil Dewey. Dewey provided free space for the Association in his Library Bureau offices at 32 Hawley Street in Boston for a period.” According to Wikipedia, Dewey’s Spelling Reform Association was headquartered in this location. Surprisingly, I was able to find very little about either of the Robinsons or the so-called prominent Bostonian, Mr. Forristall. He and A. W. Robinson were among the founders of the Boston Stationers’ Association in 1887 according to an article in the American stationer and office manager, Volume 83, 1918, p 18. The article reported on a celebration of the 30th anniversary of the organization in 1918, saying that only eight of the founding members were still living but didn’t give their names. A brief mention in the Inland printer/American lithographer, v. 9, 1892, p. 448 mentions that an “eloquent tribute of Henry Cabot Lodge to Massachusetts has been prepared by Warren J. Robinson, printer, 91 Oliver street, Boston, in a neat booklet and issued as a complimentary souvenir. It is but due to Mr. Robinson to say that the impression created by his compliment is that he is a man of taste and discernment apart from his perfection as a printer.” In contrast, the only definitive personal mention I could find for A. W. Robinson was a curious story in Fishing Scraps, v. 6, 1883, p. 41. He caught a rare fish in Dorchester bay described as being flat as a flounder with a mouth like a fresh water sucker with a sort of tongue, fins like wings and bony spikes on its back and tail. The natural history museum was the recipient of Mr. Robinson’s “piscatorial curiosity.” Apart from this odd article and without knowing his first name or other particulars, I was not able to find anything about his residence, family or other details. There was an Albert W. Robinson, born in 1844 in Maine, living in Boston in 1880 with the occupation of “stationer” and in 1900 listed just as a merchant. But without other confirmation, it is not certain he was the president of the engraving company. Fortunately, I was able to find quite a few stories about the company and its products, mostly during the 1880s. The American Stationer article that associated Forristall and A. W. Robinson listed menus among their offerings, and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, of all places, has a collection of 20 menus from 1881-1884. They are different from my bookmarks since there is more real estate to work with, but there are some similarities in style. The Kansas City Public Library has a trade card for J. E. Vincent, a milliner in Kansas City, dated 1883 with a boating scene, also reminiscent of my bookmarks. An ad in The American Stationer, v. 12, 20 Jul 1882, p. 137 touts Robinson’s fringed Christmas cards for 1882 and New Year’s cards for 1883 in envelopes and wrappers. Another ad in the same publication, v. 14, 16 Aug 1883, p. 290 announces an extensive line of holiday cards that are “Hand-painted, Printed on Satin, German, Steel-Plate, Colored, &c” and lists the address of 25 Arch St. with other locations at 27 Kelly and 24 Exchange Place. This description and the presence of two branches are indicators of what was probably the hey-day of the company in the 1880s. It is interesting to compare their ad to those nearby for competing purveyors of similar goods, with Robinson having the most descriptive and fancy techniques. The most exciting find was an article in Publishers Weekly, v. 20, 15 Oct 1881, p. 494 which describes “a line of cards especially noticeable for their daintiness and elegance, and their delicacy of design and coloring; the majority of them are finished in silk fringe, silk cords and tassels, or with rich satin ribbon bows; they are round, square, star-shaped, in the form of a banner, or a crescent, while others are fastened onto a handsome broad fringed ribbon to be used as book markers.” Several cards are named and described in even more detail. Not only does this description mention bookmarks specifically, a rare occurrence, it also captures the special appeal of Robinson’s designs. It goes on to say, “The designs are engraved and colored by hand; they consist of little landscapes, bouquets, a palette with a little marine picture, a nest of young birds amidst green foliage, etc. Where the card is not fringed it is finished with a beveled edge in gold which looks rich and pretty.” My bookmarks illustrate many of these features: the daintiness and elegance of the stag design; the hand coloring and beveled edge of the Christmas design; the delicate coloring, wide fringed ribbon and satin bows of the Easter marker. I never tire of looking at these bookmarks. Even though they express many of the Victorian preferences for ornamentation, they also have a mystery and elegance that draws the eye into their miniature worlds. Although I could never prove it, my guess is that these bookmarks were made by the firm headed by A. W. Robinson rather that Warren J. Robinson even though the latter had more visibility. I realized that Warren’s company was called Robinson Printing—rather than Engraving—a detail that I thought was insignificant at first. I still wonder about the fates of both companies and their owners, and will keep looking for more examples of their excellent bookmarks. Bookmark specifications: Stag Bookmark specifications: Merry Christmas Bookmark specifications: Rejoice this Easter Day
Laine Farley is a digital librarian who misses being around the look, feel and smell of real books. Her collection of over 3,000 bookmarks began with a serendipitous find while reviewing books donated to the library. Fortunately, her complementary collection of articles and books about bookmarks provides an excuse for her to get back to libraries and try her hand at writing about bookmarks. Contact Laine.
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