Past

News Archive

The Rose and Leon Doret Collection of Business Ephemera Available on ImPAC

Advertisement for Benton & Brother, manufacturer of gold pens, 1866.

Advertisement for Benton & Brother, manufacturer of gold pens, 1866.

Advertisement for Benton & Brother, manufacturer of gold pens, 1866.

Price list for inks, mucilage, flavoring extracts, liquid blue &c., 1868.

Advertisement for Benton & Brother, manufacturer of gold pens, 1866.

Page from J.M. Keep & Co.’s price list, ca. 1868.

This collection was created by Library Company member David Doret and named in honor of his parents. The core of Mr. Doret's collection, and the material that is digitized, consists of over 150 pieces of printed advertising ephemera sent by suppliers of stationery and related products to the Philadelphia firm of John C. Clark from 1866 to 1868. Products represented include writing inks, papers, envelopes, pens, sealing wax, rubber stamps, embossing stamps, adhesives, twine and twine holders, pens and pencils, and many other items "in the stationery line." Many items in the collection are illustrated and some include price lists. A few, such as advertisements for paper tags and stamping machines, come with actual samples. Together the materials demonstrate the wide variety of products available to consumers for their professional and personal needs.

Items in the Doret Collection augment the Library Company's already strong ephemera holdings which, in addition to advertising circulars, include trade cards, postcards, broadsides, pamphlets, and comic valentines. Focusing on business and commerce broadly and record-keeping specifically, the content intersects other primary materials in the collection such as bookkeeping manuals, advice books on being a successful businessman, and works on penmanship.

To support the Visual Culture Program at the Library Company (VCP@LCP), Mr. Doret has generously donated funds to digitize these materials and make them available online to the public. Mr. Doret also continues to add to this collection of business ephemera with donations spanning the 18th and 19th centuries and including printed forms, lithographs, blank books, and more.

1314 Locust Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107 (215) 546-3181 FAX (215) 546-5167
Copyright © 2011 Library Company of Philadelphia | All Rights Reserved