1924 Rare First Edition - Memories and a Garden by Emily Eldredge Saville

A quiet and deeply personal garden of memory, where childhood, nature, and time unfold with gentle grace.

Author: Emily Eldredge Saville.
Title: Memories and a Garden.
Publisher: [No place, Cambridge, Massachusetts], Privately Printed, 1924. First Edition.
Language: Text in English.
Size: 9.5 x 7 inches.
Pages: x, 212 pages.
Binding: Attractive and very good original green-gray cloth binding, with gilt titles to the front board and spine; upper cover adorned with a mounted photographic illustration of a garden path; light scuffing and gentle signs of wear as shown; hinges sound; a pleasing and well-preserved copy; housed in a removable protective mylar cover.
Content: Very good to near fine; bright, clean, and tight; a beautifully preserved example.
Illustrations: Complete with a delicate frontispiece by Jessie Willcox Smith entitled My Mother’s Second Little Girl, along with three photographic plates depicting children and garden scenes; all illustrations well preserved.

Estimate: (USD 150–200).

The book: Privately printed shortly after the author’s death, Memories and a Garden is a deeply intimate and reflective work, unfolding as a series of seasonal impressions rooted in memory, place, and quiet observation. Through a calendar of essays, Emily Eldredge Saville evokes the rhythms of New England life, blending personal recollection with the timeless presence of the garden. The inclusion of Jessie Willcox Smith’s gentle and evocative frontispiece lends the work an added emotional resonance, transforming this volume into both a literary keepsake and a tribute to a life remembered with tenderness.

The author: Emily Eldredge Saville (1869–1923) was born in East Greenwich, Rhode Island, within a family deeply connected to medicine, literature, and tradition. Her writing reflects a life shaped by memory, family ties, and a profound attachment to place. Memories and a Garden, published posthumously, stands as a quiet and graceful testament to her inner world.

The illustrator: Jessie Willcox Smith (1863–1935) was one of the foremost illustrators of the American Golden Age, celebrated for her tender and luminous portrayals of childhood. Her work appeared in leading publications such as Harper’s and Scribner’s, and her illustrations continue to be cherished for their warmth and emotional depth. Her contribution here adds a subtle but powerful layer of sentiment to the volume.