Bookplates

Historical/Biographical Note

Historical/Biographical Note

Printed bookplates first appear, in Europe, in the fifteenth century, following the invention of the printing press, and became more common in the seventeenth century. In the American colonies, examples are known from the eighteenth century, it is not until the later nineteenth century that the use of bookplates becomes common. At the same time, bookplate collecting and exchanging became a fashionable hobby. The bookplate collection of Historic New England consists of over 250 examples.
The oldest datable bookplate in the collection belongs to English physician Robert Cony, M.D. (c. 1645-1713), recording as coming from a book published in 1709. The earliest dated bookplate (1802) in the collection is that of Dorothy Wendell of Portsmouth N.H., (presumably Dorothy Sherburne Wendell, 1752-1837, second wife of John Wendell). Most of the bookplates are undated, and most of the dated examples (approximately 45) are from the first two decades of the twentieth century and the bulk of the undated bookplates in the collection presumably date to this period as well. The bookplates are primarily associated with Boston or more generally, New England, and belonged to private citizens as well as institutions such as universities or libraries. The designs of the bookplates may reflect the personal interests or family history of the owners. Heraldic devises are also common. Institutional bookplates often honor the donor of the book or of a book-purchasing fund, or, less frequently document rules related to use of the book or library.
A number of the bookplates are signed by the artist (as designer and/or engraver), either by name or by initials. They represent the work of local graphic artists, well known in their day, including J. Winfred Spenceley, Frederick Garrison Hall, and Sidney L. Smith, all of Boston, and W. F. Hopson of New Haven.