Henry Altemus Company

The following are questions submitted via email by our visitors.

If you have a question about Altemus books that you'd like answered please click on the Questions link at the bottom left of this page.

Vademecum Series (later numbering)

Q:  I hope you can help me. I have Treasure Island, 271 pages, the 1st says "To The Hesitating Purchaser . . .", and the 2nd says "TO S. L. O., . . . . by his affectionate friend, THE AUTHOR". The book lists other Henry Altemus Company publications in the back. I'm trying to determine when this was published and the value.

A:  Your book is part of the Vademecum Series (Series #180). This was a set of books which was multi authored and consisted of many titles. Your book was published in the mid teens or later. Originally it had gold gilt on the cover which apparently has worn off over the years. The book also came with a jacket.

Without a jacket in subpar condition I do not think the book has any more than nominal value. It is relatively common.

Young People's Library

Q:  I have a book named Exploring and Discovery in the Frozen Seas (copyright 1896). Could you tell me about it, was it a series? Thanks

A:  Your book is part of the Young's People Library. It is in format #3.
This format was published beginning in 1902 and continued into the 1920s.
Dating your book exactly can be done by using the ads in the back plus the dust jacket (which unfortunately is not present on this book).
A couple of tips: If the book Vic is listed in the Young People's Library books in the back ads, then your book is pre-1907. If not, post-1907. If Circus Boys #4is listed, then it is post 1912.

Beauxarts Series

Q:  I have a very old Representative Men by Ralph Waldo Emerson and am trying to verify the Henry Altemus printing date. The book is in excellent condition, but there is no copyright date printed. The only date shown is on the cover page, which simply shows “H.A.” on one side of the frame and “1842” on the other side of the frame. However I think that is the Altemus date and not specific to this volume. I know that Emerson wrote this in approximately 1850 and am wondering if I may have come across a 1st Edition?

A:  Your book (which is a reprint) was published as part of the Beauxarts Series (Series #47) in 1897 . This series was published between 1897 and 1902. It consisted of numerous reprinted titles of fiction and nonfiction by many different authors. At its peak it had 178 books. The books initially came boxed.

Petit Trianon Series

Q:  I have an old book 'Oliver W. Holmes Poems', Philadelphia Henry Altemus Co. There is no copy write date on it, but the first poem is Cambridge Churchyard on pg 13. Could you tell me the date it was printed & what is it worth.
Thank you,
Joanne

A:  Your book was published as part of the Petit Trianon Series in 1901-1902. Because it is in rather rough shape without its original box, I think it only has nominal value. See the question and answer on June 15, 2006 about this series.

Dainty Series

Q:  I am doing research on two books published by the Henry Altemus Company. They were written by Mary D. Brine and published in 1900 and 1903. They are The Doings of a Little Couple (1900) and How a Little Couple Went Abroad (1903). I am interested in finding out the name of the illustrator or illustrators for each book. Would you have that information? They are going to be used in an exhibition and we would like to identify the artist of the illustration for the public. Additional information you can provide on the books would also be most helpful. Your web page was a wonderful find. If you could place the books within your series I would be most appreciative. I have attached a photograph of each book to assist you.

A:  I am unable to help with the illustrators. Sorry.

Both books were part of the Dainty Series (Series #74). The Dainty Series was a series of total of 26 books of which yours are numbered 9 (Doings..) and 15 (How..). There were a number of different formats. Your books are from Format 2 and were published in the early 1900s. They all came with dust jackets. I am enclosing a picture of what the format 2 books' jacket looked like. This series was occasionally called the Honor Bright Series in some catalogues.

La Belle Fleur Series

Q:  hello, i have a little book by this publisher (Altemus.) It is "Evangeline and Other Poems." There is no date anywhere. The book is brown cloth with red tulips and greenery on the cover. There are several illustrations. Can you tell me anything about this beautiful little book? Thanks

A:  Your book was published in 1901 as part of the La Belle Fleur Series. This series consisted of 131 books which were reprints of various essays, poems, religious works and fiction. The books all had the same basic cover design but the colors varied.

It originally came with a dust jacket but these jackets are nearly impossible to find nowadays. It has little value although when it comes to buying books sometimes people are willing to pay more than a book is objectively worth.

Love and Friendship Series

Q:  I have had this book since I was about 10 years old and would like to know some history about it. It is The Tribune Primer by Eugene Field. It is in very good shape. A white cover gold flowers on the side and violets on the cover. There is no copyright date so I do not know how old it really is.

A:  Your book belongs to the Love and Friendship Series. It is series #127 in my bibliography. This series was published between 1901-1912. Your book was part of format #2 and was published in the early years of the series. This format had many different flowers on the right with a similar pattern noted on the left. It was originally jacketed.

For your interest, I have enclosed a pic from that format with a different flower. As you can see the flowers are similar and yet different. Probably the book has little more than nominal value.

Petit Trianon Series

Q:  I have a copy of Courtship of Miles Standish from Henry Altemus co. It has other poems also. I was just trying to get information about it because it has no publishing date or any other dates at all. If you have any info. I would appreciate it. I'll send a picture too.

A:  Your book is part of a multi-volume multi-authored set called the Petit-Trianon Series. It was published between 1896-1910 and at its peak had 117 books with numbers between 1-244. Generally every year or so Altemus would change the book cover and the titles which comprised the series. These books originally came boxed but of course the boxes are quite scarce.

Your book was published in late 1904-1905 and was numbered #42 in the series.

Vademecum Series (later numbering)

Q:  I have the 1899 hardback edition of A Christmas Carol in Prose. I have attached a photo of the book. Please give me any information on the rarity or non-rarity of this book.

A:  Your book was part of the Vademecum series and was published in 1900. This multi-volume series of reprints was published between 1894 and 1926 and at its peak had 187 titles. The covers as well as the titles included varied from year to year. The books originally were boxed.

Non Series

Q:  Hello.... I have a book titled Black Beauty by Ann Sewell and it has no publishing date on it. The book was given as a gift to someone Dec. 25 1921 and I wondered if you could tell me about how old it really is???? The book is in good shape and it has a young lady in a red hat on the horse. I would like to know when Black Beauty The Autobiography Of A Horse was printed by com.

A:  Black Beauty was published in more than 25 Altemus Series and more than 40 different formats between 1895 and 1933. The only book that is consistent with your description is a Black Beauty published as non series book. Black Beauty was published in three different non series versions. This one was first done in about 1920. The exact date of your book can only be determined by an examination of the ads in the book and on the dust jacket (if available). It was reprinted numerous times. A dust jacketed copy is shown here.