Estelle Frances Tayloe commonplace books

Content Description

This collection features two leather-bound commonplace books belonging to Estelle Frances Tayloe (1833-1867) of Washington, D.C. Estelle was the daughter of Benjamin Ogle Tayloe, an American businessman and diplomat. The earlier album, dated c.1842-1859, features a black embossed cover and a golden gilt "Scraps" text along its spine. The second, dated 1851, features a red embossed cover with the text "The Victoria Album" in golden gilt. The 1842 album features embossed frames in which illustrations have been pasted in with manuscript captions, as well as a few hand-written and signed sentiments from friends, some with the noted location of Troy, New York. Towards the back of the album, a child's death notice and a lock of hair are pasted into the pages. The frontispiece is inscribed by her Aunt Virginia as a gift to Estelle. The album also contains mounted poetry, one selection being a poem in French titled "The Original Jim Crow". There are also newspaper clippings from Richmond, Virginia. A hand-illustration of a gravestone featuring the posthumous information of John F. Dickinson and a loose pamphlet on poetry edited by Horatio A. Wilson from Troy, New York is tucked in the front cover. The majority of the album's pages beyond the quarter-way mark are left blank. The 1851 album contains prominent lithographic illustrations of Victorian-era nobles and elites. Throughout the album exist letters addressed to Estelle that discuss friendship, future plans, and a "Study house" in Troy, New York. A class list from 1851 lists several girls' names including Estelle's. Like the preceding album, most of the pages are left blank. Tipped into the inside cover is a small envelope containing an individual's hair adjacent to the signature of Estelle Frances Tayloe.

Acquisition Type

Purchase

Provenance

Purchased from Citation Books, 10 June 2022.

Restrictions Apply

No

Use Restrictions

Folder 1 which contains the1842 album must be handled gently as the covers and spine are detached.