Month: October 2018

Adah Isaacs Menken

How serendipitous that on a day where I mulled over how Stainforth identified American women writers, by day’s end I should learn of someone new, thanks to Reverend Stainforth.  Adah Isaacs Menken, an American actress and poet (1835-1868), was known to this British book collector, evidence of which is in his catalog. She identified one … Continue reading Adah Isaacs Menken

Another woman of color

I spoke too soon and take back my earlier snarky and wistful comments. Our man Stainforth had in his collection a piece written by Adah Isaacs Menken who was a nineteenth-century actress, artist and poet. I am not familiar with her story and will research this further, but her VIAF record identifies her as an … Continue reading Another woman of color

Identify and Identity

In continuing name-authority research for Stainforth writers who do not have VIAF records, I ponder how Reverend Stainforth identified American women writers to include in his private library.  No doubt the book dealers with whom he worked recommended new authors and titles on a regular basis, yet he had his favorite reference tools which evince … Continue reading Identify and Identity

The Grecians. A Tragedy, by Mrs. Vaughan (1824), with Stainforth bookplate

While fixing typos in our transcription data, I stumbled upon yet another Stainforth bookplate in Google Books in a digital copy of The Grecians, a play by Mrs. Vaughan (1824). The bookplate indicates that Francis Stainforth owned this exact copy of the book, and so far we have identified around 300 of these. There are … Continue reading The Grecians. A Tragedy, by Mrs. Vaughan (1824), with Stainforth bookplate