Abraham Lincoln Noted in 1864 Boyd's Washington &

Abraham Lincoln Noted in 1864 Boyd's Washington & Georgetown Directory

Boyd's Washington and Georgetown Directory, 1864. Compiled by Andrew Boyd. Containing also a Business Directory of Washington, Georgetown and Alexandria. Washington: Hudson Taylor, Philip & Solomons and Blanchard & Mohun, 1864. Original printed stiff green paper boards and black gilt spine. Housed in a custom folding box lined with faded purple velvet. Without pages 3-48 based on the index these pages consisted of advertisements lower half of page 313-314 excised. Loss to spine ends with spine cloth lifting from the boards. Mild rubbing and soiling boards. The binding is shaken but holding with slight separation of the rear board along the edge. A very good copy offering a glimpse of the nation's capital during the Civil War.

"The rapid growth of the city during the last two or three years, " editor Boyd explains in his prefatory note, "from about 65,000 to more than 130,000 in habitants, has more than doubled the labor and difficulty of collecting information in a city like Washington... yet no part of information has been curtailed." The volume lists some 25,000 residents-including, most notably "LINCOLN ABRAHAM, President of the United States, Executive Mansion Pa Ave bet 15th and 17th west" (page 198)- as well as "other much useful information" including records of the President and Cabinet members from 1789, summaries of American military conflicts and lists of American and foreign diplomats. Advertisements include printers (the Gibson Bros. boast of visiting cards "executed with taste and nearly equal to fine engraving at very moderate prices"), bricklayers, clothiers, bakers and one Edward C. Dryer, "importer of Havana segars." The only explicit reference to the Civil War occurs in an article on the "Rebellion of 1861" (pages 61-62), which concludes in the fervent hope, "May we all become a united and happy people again..." With vignette of the Capitol building (page 57). This copy bound with the 1863 annual report of the New England Mutual Life Insurance Company of Boston at rear.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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