The Personal Histories of Every Day Americans from Langdon Manor Books

Langdon Manor Books has issued their Catalog 17 of The Extraordinary History of the Every Day. Langdon Manor catalogues aren't always the easiest to describe as they contain a mix of unusual or uncommon items, rather than simply a collection of books. Fortunately, proprietor Adam Schachter opens this selection with a description of their business which provides us with an excellent summary of what they do: “...it turns out we don't sell a lot of Book books, though we do sell them...We specialize in mostly-unique materials that tell compelling American stories with an emphasis on underrepresented groups. Diaries, scrapbooks, photo albums, archives and you've probably-never-seen-it-before ephemera are our forte...” Now, we will move ahead to some specific items to be found in this catalogue.

It was perhaps the darkest time in American history, the nation at war with itself. There wasn't much to feel good about in the Civil War, but here is a diary from a Union soldier with many upbeat moments. The timing of Richard Golden's diary explains that anomaly – January-June 1865. Golden was an Illinois farmer when he enlisted in 1862, but this diary covers the last days of his service. He had served during Sherman's march to the sea, and during the time period of this diary, participated in the Battle of Bentonville March 19-21. Confederate Gen. Joseph Johnston's troops made a great effort to disrupt Union advances but were forced to retreat by overwhelmingly superior Union numbers. The end was only three weeks away. However, even as late as April 2, Golden writes, “we expect to start on another campaign about the 15th of this month, are preparing as fast as possible.” Just three days later, he learns that Lee has surrendered Richmond. Sheridan is following Lee and “capturing prisoners by the thousands.” Still, on April 10, he writes that they “skirmished” with a band of rebels and three of their men were wounded. Then, on April 12, they learn Lee has surrendered. “What cheering there has been this morning. In every direction I hear the boys cheering. Oh, may the leading men soon desist the matter that we may be on our road home.” Then begins the long, but happy journey back. Item 16. Priced at $2,500.

Most new publications do not succeed; they don't even last very long. This is true of numerous attempts to start publications targeted to black audiences. Langdon Manor offers issues of a few such attempts. One thing particularly noticeable about black-oriented publications is their attempt to instill pride in its readers. While certainly a positive, it is sad that such was felt necessary, but treatment of African Americans has often been so demeaning that community leaders found it necessary to instill self-esteem in their readers to counteract what they too often were told by general society. Item 4 is Strictly Philly, Vol. 1, No. 1, August 1954. This is a 64-page first issue of a publication geared to black Philadelphians. Langdon Manor was unable to determine who was behind it other than a Jackson Publications with an address. It doesn't state any intentions, but it contains local and national news, gossip about Philadelphia's black society, politics, crime, local events, performances, sports, religion, photographs, along with jokes and inspirational quotes. It also showed a willingness to tackle more difficult subjects, in this case children born out of wedlock. It claimed to be “Philadelphia's most widely read pocket-sized monthly,” which is odd since this was the first edition. How would they know? Perhaps it was the only pocket-sized monthly from Philadelphia. It is exceeding rare now. Langdon Manor knows of only one other issue, October 1954. $1,250.

Item 6 is another such African American rarity. This is Vol. 1, No. 1 from March 1941 of The Criterion. Published in Oakland and spun off from the California Voice, its target was African Americans from Northern California. It was edited by black journalists and scholars and featured the work of a prominent black photographer. It stated it would have “outstanding Negroes in the community contribute articles on their respective lines.” One was Joseph Grier, who had just received a masters in engineering from U.C. Berkeley, and who would become the first black tenured professor in the sciences in the University of California system. Langdon Manor describes the publication as “a spectacular combination of content, contributors and rarity,” but notes they could find no other mention online or in OCLC about it. They suspect this may have been the only issue. $2,000.

This next item is a testament to courage and determination, though one can only feel dread in contemplating what happened to its participants. It is a photograph album of the Judische Sport-Gemeinschaft (Jewish Sports Community) which existed in Berlin from 1933-42. There are 48 pages containing 146 photos, several with captions. It was kept by Suse Florsheim. When Hitler rose to power in 1933, the Nazis soon excluded Jews from German sports and recreational facilities. The result was Jews quickly forming their own sports associations. The pictures are of girls engaged in various sports. There is nothing here that would distinguish them from any other group of young ladies engaged in sports despite the terrible treatment they were facing in their homeland. There is no way we can know what happened to all of them, but it is unlikely very many survived the Holocaust. Fortunately, Suse Florsheim was evidently one of the lucky ones, which would explain how this photo album survived. It includes a postcard sent to her in care of Dr. C. Hulse in New York in 1938, implying she was out of Germany by then. The postcard contains a photo of this association and many signatures, likely of friends still in Germany at the time. Item 20. $2,000.

This is the story of two other people who faced more than their share of hostility in their homeland and whose lives ended in tragedy. It is a scrap book of Kenneth Martin and John Dooley. They faced double discrimination for being an interracial gay couple in the 1980s to early 1990s. They were married, but no states recognized same-sex marriage at the time. Not only was it a time of less acceptance, it was also the time of AIDS before a way of controlling the disease had been found. Photos show them working a booth together at a political rally and with a wedding cake. It shows them in Washington for the unveiling of the massive quilt. Other photos show them alone or with friends. Martin, an African American, was a high school teacher and theater director before turning his attention to serving in AIDS education and prevention organizations. He died of AIDS in 1991 at age 29, 38 months after discovering he had contracted AIDS. Dooley died in 1995, and while his cause of death is uncertain, his obituary requested in lieu of flowers that contributions be made to a hospital's AIDS unit. Item 24. $7,500.

Langdon Manor Books may be reached at 713-443-4697 or Orders@Langdonmanorbooks.com. Their website is found at www.langdonmanorbooks.com.

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The Personal Histories of Every Day Americans from Langdon Manor Books

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