1893 Rare Book - Evangeline, A Tale of Acadie illustrated by F O C Darley

Author: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Illustrated by Felix Octavius Carr Darley.
Title: Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie.
Publisher: Boston and New York, Houghton, Mifflin and Company, The Riverside Press, Cambridge, 1893.
Language: Text in English.
Size: 8" x 5.5".
Pages: 157 pages.
Binding: Attractive and very good publisher’s original pale green cloth binding, decoratively stamped in gilt and white with floral Arts and Crafts motifs on cover and spine. Gilt title to front and spine (hinges fine, overall slightly worn and scuffed - as shown) under a protective removable mylar cover. Upper edge gilt.
Content: Very good content (bright, tight and clean, rare light foxing - as shown).
Illustrations: Illustrated throughout with 16 finely rendered black-and-white engravings by F.O.C. Darley, including a striking frontispiece and full-page illustrations depicting key moments from the poem. All illustrations are complete and in excellent condition.

The book: A lovely illustrated edition of Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie, Longfellow’s enduring romantic epic about the Acadian expulsion. This 1893 edition, printed by the renowned Riverside Press and illustrated by F.O.C. Darley, presents the poem with a blend of literary richness and artistic charm. The Arts and Crafts-style binding, with its floral symmetry and clean typography, makes this a visually elegant collector’s piece.

The author: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882) was one of America’s most celebrated 19th-century poets. Known for works like The Song of Hiawatha and Paul Revere’s Ride, Longfellow combined accessible language with lyrical elegance. Evangeline, published in 1847, was among his most popular works, blending historical tragedy with a deeply personal and poetic narrative.

The illustrator: Felix Octavius Carr Darley (1822–1888) was a leading American illustrator of the 19th century, renowned for his work with literary giants such as Washington Irving, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Charles Dickens. His illustrations for Evangeline lend a poignant visual interpretation to the poem, capturing the emotional tone and historical detail with remarkable delicacy and storytelling clarity.