Item #22634 The Echo: A Story About William and Dick. Children's, Chapbook, Dutchess County NY, Florida Association.
The Echo: A Story About William and Dick.

The Echo: A Story About William and Dick.

Boston: Samuel Colman, nd (1846). Wraps. Charming early hand colored Boston chapbook, the tale of 2 boys contemplating skipping school but scared out of doing so by an echo, followed by an explanation of the cause of echoes.

A bit of period penmanship practice at the top of the front wrapper, and an 1846 inscription at the title page, "Ambrose Burnham Hart, from his affectionate Aunt Anne Smyth-Stuart, 25 Dec. 1846, Xmas Day - La Grange".

Ambrose Burnham Hart was born 25 January 1844 (so was 3 when given this gift). He was the son of Elizabeth Nichols and Benjamin Hall Hart (born Hempstead, died Poughkeepsie NY), who established a family home in LaGrange NY called "Heartsease".

Ambrose Hart moved with his brothers from New York to Federal Point, Florida after fighting in the Civil War, and established one of the early orange and citrus fruit groves in the area. They bought the land from John Francis Tenney, living in slave cabins on the property until they could build their own home.

8vo, 15pp, hand colored illustration on inside cover, 5 full page wood cut hand colored illustrations. In the original yellow paper wrappers, with an early hand stitched spine obviously carried out at the same time as the stitched repairs to the pages. The title page and the Explanation page with very careful contemporary stitched repairs to diagonal tear, indicating the esteem in which this item was held. With woodcut illustration at front wrapper of the 2 boys climbing a gate, with the title "The Echo". Wrappers a bit dusty and rubbed, a bit few closed tears, small loss to upper corner front wrapper. OCLC: 51883123 records 2 copies, at the University of Florida and Yale. Good + overall. Item #22634

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