Frequently sellers of Altemus and other late 19th century books state there is no dust jacket, “as issued”. The vast majority of the time this claim is not true. Virtually all Altemus books from the 1890’s and later had dust jackets or were boxed. The exception is the rare book in wraps.

The next number of blog posts will illustrate some of these early Altemus dust jackets.

Series #114 Kipling Series

This 21 title series of Kipling reprints was published in 1899-1901. The books are somewhat uncommon.
The 1899 books note Henry Altemus not Henry Altemus Company on the title page.

Only one dust jacket format has been noted.

Frequently sellers of Altemus and other late 19th century books state there is no dust jacket, “as issued”. The vast majority of the time this claim is not true. Virtually all Altemus books from the 1890’s and later had dust jackets or were boxed. The exception is the rare book own wraps.

The next number of blog posts will illustrate some of these early Altemus dust jackets.

Series #37 Altemus Library

This 41 title series of reprints was published between 1892 and 1895.
The jackets are plain with the title written at the top of the cover. The back of the jacket has a listing of the titles in the series.

I have seen no other dust jacket formats for this series.

Q: Hello, I was researching an Altemus book (Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin) on this site, and believe it may be a listed (38 in the first series listed) example, but without a picture. As you can see, the cover is in poor condition, but the pages are all there, with the portrait (frontispiece) being the only detached page. Am I correct to conclude that this is a pre-1897 example? How rare is it? Can you give me any indication of value?

A: Unfortunately you misidentified your book. It is actually part of the Vademecum Series and was published in 1915.

It is pictured here: http://henryaltemus.com/series/series180.htm. It originally came within a labeled box. See below.

It is a reprint. In great shape it might be worth a couple of dollars. In this condition it has no monetary value.

Q: My mother gave me a Treasure Island book. Would you please let me know the year it was printed and the value. Here are a few pictures of the book.

A: Your book is part of the Vademecum Series and was published in 1896.

It is a reprint and worth a few dollars.

Q: Can you help me with a copyright date for this book? Black Beauty

A: Your books is part of the 16 volume Ever New Series and was published in 1915. The first Altemus publication of this title was in 1896 but it was published by other firms previously. All of the Altemus copies of this title are reprints.

The books of this series are identical to the same titles in the Young People’s Library except these books are a bit larger and have the decorative pattern at the base off the front cover. They are much scarcer also.

Here is the same title in the Young People’s Library -Format 3.

Q: What can you tell me about the attached book (Emerson’s Essays) – date of publication, series, value, etc. Thanks very much.

A: Your book is part of the Vademecum Series and was published in 1901.

It it a reprint and was originally sold within a labeled box.

Because it is a print of a not very collectible title, it has only nominal value.

Q: Hi I have the book Line Upon Line, it appears to be very old. It has a copyright stamp of 1897 by Henry Altemus. Just wondering if you could tell me if it’s worth anything? Or maybe you could direct me to someone that may know about this book.

A: Your book is part of the Vademecum Series and was published in 1900.

It originally was sold within a labeled box. It is a reprint.

This book is worth maybe a couple of dollars.

Q: I have this Black Beauty book it has written inside by the owner the date August 7, ’05. And I’m 100% sure it’s not 2005 as the book has been in my family as long as I can remember and I’m 80. After looking through your identifications I do not find the exact cover. There is no published date inside and the last pages are listings of publications. I think I’m safe in assuming the book has no monetary value as it appears that many and varied books were printed for all titles. But am curious as to its published date. It’s a cute little book.

A: This book is part of the Vademecum Series and is a reprint as are all of the Vademecum Series’ titles. It was published in 1905-1906. Four different flower patterns have been noted as appliqués’. This year’s books have been seen with various colors and originally came boxed. See below.

Q: I recently purchased a book named The Water-Babies by Charles Kingsley that was published by Henry Altemus Company. I would really appreciate your help in identifying the date in which this book was published. Enclosed is a picture of the cover of the book.

A: Your book is part of the Petit Trianon Series and was published in 1903-1904. During this year the titles which are all reprints had the pedestal on the left half of the front cover (beige, pink or blue) and one of 16 flowers on the left. It was originally sold within a labeled box. See below.

Q: I picked this book up because I love Kipling and was curious about it, i saw that it is part of a series – do you know anything else? Is it rare? I cant seem to find it on any rare book sites. Thanks! On the City Wall

A: Your book is part of the 21 title Kipling Series. This set was published in 1899-1900. Kipling books were reprinted by numerous firms and are not especially rare.

This book was originally published with a dust jacket. Shown below.