1901 Rare Book - Drake's New England Legends and Folk Lore, Illustrated
Author: Samuel Adams Drake.
Title: A Book of New England Legends and Folk Lore in Prose and Poetry.
Publisher: Boston: Little, Brown, and Company, 1901. New and Revised Edition.
Language: Text in English.
Size: 8" x 5.5".
Pages: xvi-477 pages + publisher's advertisements.
Binding: Very good to near fine original grey-blue cloth binding, decoratively stamped in gilt to the front board and spine, with the upper edge gilt. The binding remains particularly bright and attractive, showing only light signs of age and handling. A handsome example of this increasingly uncommon revised edition. Hinges sound and secure. Protected in a removable mylar cover.
Content: Very good content, clean and well preserved throughout. Endpapers have been professionally replaced by a previous owner, as shown. Pages remain bright with only light age toning and occasional signs of use expected from a volume of this period.
Illustrations: Profusely illustrated throughout with numerous photographic plates and illustrations depicting historic sites, colonial landmarks, legendary locations, and scenes associated with the folklore and traditions of New England.
Estimate: (Uncommon, USD200 - 250)
The book: A fascinating and substantial survey of the legends, superstitions, witchcraft, ghost stories, colonial traditions, maritime tales, and historical folklore of New England. Samuel Adams Drake gathers together a remarkable treasury of regional lore, blending documented history with the enduring stories that helped shape the cultural identity of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont.
Among its many subjects are the Salem witchcraft trials, haunted houses, colonial heroes, Puritan traditions, maritime legends, Native American stories, mysterious landmarks, and local traditions passed down through generations. Drake's work preserves a rich body of folklore that was already beginning to disappear at the turn of the twentieth century.
The numerous illustrations and photographic views add considerable charm and historical value, transforming the volume into both a reference work and a visual journey through old New England.
The author: Samuel Adams Drake (1833–1905) was one of New England's foremost historians and antiquarians. A prolific writer, he devoted much of his career to documenting the history, architecture, traditions, and legends of the northeastern United States. His works, including Historic Mansions and Highways Around Boston, Nooks and Corners of the New England Coast, and numerous studies of colonial America, remain valuable sources for historians, genealogists, and collectors alike.
In A Book of New England Legends and Folk Lore, Drake combines the careful research of a historian with the storytelling instincts of a folklorist, producing one of the most engaging and enduring collections of New England legend ever published. Particularly appealing to collectors of witchcraft, Americana, early folklore, ghost stories, and regional history, the work remains an important contribution to the preservation of New England's cultural heritage.