Misplaced Pages

#730269

69-670: The musical library of Joseph W. Drexel had its origins in the library of Henry F. Albrecht (1822-1875). Born in Germany and trained as a musician, Albrecht's passion for collecting books on music had been fueled by Siegfried Dehn , musician and librarian of the Royal Library (today the Berlin State Library ), whom he had met in Berlin. Albrecht emigrated to the United States in 1848 where he

138-583: A dictionary arrangement of authors and subjects, but written on thinner cards. The public catalog was severely criticized in the public press for various idiosyncrasies, example articles being "A Library's Buried Treasures" in The New York Times of June 8, 1881, and in September 1881 a critical letter submitted to the Boston Transcript over the signature of "Delta." The second article was reprinted in

207-403: A downtown office at his disposal. Cogswell was concerned about the progress of the plans for the library, and in 1842, threatened to take an offer to be secretary of legation under Washington Irving, now appointed American minister to Spain . Astor then agreed that more formal work could begin on the library: as soon as the building was finished, Cogswell was to be librarian with a salary of $ 2,500

276-407: A matter of prime importance. By the end of 1855, Cogswell was able to report that the catalog was finished, excepting only a small portion of history. The collection was grouped into 14 departments, for each of which a separate catalog was prepared. The alphabetical index to these separate catalogs formed the basis of the printed catalog issued during 1857–1861 in 4 volumes. The timing and the format of

345-462: A single bequest to a charitable organization : All that portion of my library which consists of works relating to the science of music, also all musical compositions and treatises on other works on musical subjects" [be given to the Lenox Library] "upon the express condition that the said trustees of The Lenox Library shall sign and deliver to my executors, hereinafter named, a written acceptance of

414-469: A subject or rather a broadly grouped classed catalog. The cards were about 5 inches long by 3 inches (76 mm) high. For author entries reliance was made upon the interleaved copies of the Cogswell printed catalog and upon a set of author cards – by no means a complete record – for public use. In 1880 when work began upon the new printed catalog this card catalog was closed; its author cards were destroyed when

483-434: A year; meanwhile he was to receive $ 2,000 while working on the catalog. Thus matters stood until Astor's death in 1848: Cogswell lived with or near Astor, and worked on plans for the library as opportunity offered. The first meeting of the trustees came on May 20, 1848. Cogswell was appointed superintendent of the library, with authority to convene the trustees and to preside over their meetings. The name of "The Astor Library"

552-497: The Library Journal of September–October 1881. During the fifteen years following 1880, there was continuous but uneven growth of resources as signified by the number of volumes on the shelves, an increase from 193,308 in 1880 to 227,652 in 1885, to 248,856 in 1890, and to 294,325 at the end of 1895. Purchases reached their low level in 1888 when 876 volumes were bought, and their high level in 1894 when 6,886 volumes were bought,

621-559: The Harvard library and by a wide experience in the Boston book trade. The new printed catalog covered up to 1880. It had a fuller quotation of titles than the first one, a more extensive analysis of the contents of collected or comprehensive works, and greater attention to securing full names of authors. It appeared in four volumes, 1886–1888. As a catalog and as a printed book, it was a thoroughly satisfactory piece of work. The entire cost of printing

690-537: The Mayor of New York City and the Chancellor of New York State, ex officio . (The Chancellor later disappeared from the plan when the office was abolished.) In December 1842, $ 75,000 was fixed as the amount to be expended for the building, and Charles Astor Bristed was added to the list of trustees. By November 1840, Samuel Ward had died, and Cogswell began residing with Astor and his son William B. Astor. Sometimes he had

759-470: The New York Herald Tribune announced that Drexel had purchased a manuscript missal of the fifteenth century written on vellum for $ 177.50. The most important later addition to Drexel's library was the purchase of a major portion of the library of Edward F. Rimbault which was auctioned in 1877. The significance of the library even merited a newspaper announcement. Rimbault's valuable collection

SECTION 10

#1732851204731

828-557: The Tilden Foundation to become the New York Public Library (NYPL). During this time, its building was expanded twice, in 1859, and 1881. In 1836, ill health had obligated Joseph Cogswell to abandon his teaching career and enter the family of Samuel Ward , a New York banker. Three of Ward's sons had been pupils at Round Hill School which Cogswell had administered. Ward introduced Cogswell to John Jacob Astor, who by then

897-424: The $ 75,000 limit: the lowest, by contractors whose ability to finish the work was by no means satisfactorily established, amounted to $ 81,385.75; the highest, by thoroughly satisfactory contractors, amounted to $ 107,962. Saeltzer's plan was reworked, and for this plan the construction bid of $ 75,000, by Peter J. Bogert and James Harriot, was accepted on January 2, 1850. The cornerstone was laid on March 14, 1850, and

966-765: The Drexel Collection. Siegfried Dehn Siegfried Wilhelm (von) Dehn (24 or 25 February 1799 – 12 April 1858) was a German music theorist, editor, teacher and librarian. Born in Altona , Dehn was the son of a banker and learned to play the cello as a boy. Intent on becoming a diplomat, he studied law in Leipzig but also took music lessons from J. A. Dröbs. While attached to the Swedish embassy in Berlin , Dehn developed an interest in musical research, studying with Bernhard Klein . He

1035-577: The Icarians. In writing about the demise of the Germania Musical Society and Albrecht's plans, John Sullivan Dwight remarked "His library of music and of musical books, for one collected by so young a man, is really quite a wonder." Quoting from an unidentified article in the Newport Daily News , he added: "It is a well known fact that libraries of this kind are very rare" and that Albrecht's

1104-610: The Peters Edition. He was responsible for, among other works, the first publishing of the Brandenburg concertos . He also edited a large number of Lassus motets. Dehn was widely respected as a teacher. His students included Albert Becker , Ludwig Bussler , Peter Cornelius , Mikhail Glinka , Heinrich Hofmann , Gustav Nottebohm , and Anton Rubinstein . See: List of music students by teacher: C to F#Siegfried Dehn . He died in Berlin. Astor Library The Astor Library

1173-513: The United States. The state government at Albany sent extensive selections of public documents of New York. In 1855, the British commissioners of patents presented a complete set of their publications, Maine forwarded complete sets of state documents, and Massachusetts and Rhode Island took a similar step in 1856. In the beginning, there were no printed catalogs of the library to assist readers in choosing books and readers were not admitted within

1242-409: The advance in market value of United States bonds. The building was opened to the public on January 9, 1854. Hours were fixed at 10 a.m. to 5 pm. For January no books were available, but visitors were welcome. On February 1, use of books began. The library was closed on Sundays and established holidays. It was a reference library: no books could be taken from the building for any purpose. Admission

1311-465: The annual message of Governor Hamilton Fish . The trustees appointed by the act were Washington Irving, William Backhouse Astor, Daniel Lord, Jr., James G. King, Joseph Green Cogswell, Fitz-Greene Halleck, Samuel B. Ruggles, Samuel Ward, Jr., Charles Astor Bristed, John Adams Dix, and the Mayor of New York City. In April 1849, the trustees hired a house at 32 Bond Street for temporary custody and exhibition of

1380-567: The bequest. When the Lenox Library merged with the Astor Library and the Tilden Trust in 1895 to form The New York Public Library, the Drexel Collection was organized by subject based on the classification system of John Shaw Billings , the first director of the newly formed library. As stipulated by Drexel's will, his collection was given call numbers distinct from the rest of the library in

1449-467: The board of trustees. In 1876, a beginning was made on a public card catalog . For books purchased since 1866, there was until this time no public index of subjects other than the knowledge possessed by the librarians as to the books on the shelves. At the end of 1877, the library had 177,387 volumes on its shelves. Straznicky died in 1876, and J. Carson Brevoort , a trustee, was chosen to be superintendent. In February 1878, Brevoort resigned. His successor

SECTION 20

#1732851204731

1518-426: The books they had purchased. The trustees stated that "all persons desirous of resorting to the library and of examining books, may do so with all the convenience which it is in the power of the trustees to afford." At this time, the total number of books in the library was estimated at over 20,000 volumes, costing $ 27,009.33. A German-born architect, Alexander Saeltzer – who had designed Anshe Chesed Synagogue , –

1587-415: The building completed in the summer of 1853. The limit of $ 75,000 proved an impossible one. William B. Astor bore the expense of $ 1,590 for groined arches to render the structure more secure from fire, and shelving and apparatus for heating and ventilating were paid for to the amount of $ 17,141.99 from surplus interest accruing from the funds while the building was in progress and from the premium realized by

1656-518: The catalog went against Cogswell's judgment, but accorded with the desire of the trustees to put before the public a tangible result of their work. In 1866, a supplement was issued. The first catalog recorded approximately 115,000 volumes. The supplement of 1866 recorded the accessions of five years, about 15,000 volumes, and carried with it an index to subjects. It was imperfect, but also the work of someone who knew books and knew how to guide others to them. On October 31, 1855, W. B. Astor donated land for

1725-514: The collections he amassed were those of Anton Schindler and Georg Pölchau ; the latter was especially notable for its manuscripts by Johann Sebastian Bach and Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach . Dehn was also editor of Cäcilia from 1842 to 1848 and professor of the Royal Academy of the Arts from 1849. On the death of Friedrich Konrad Griepenkerl in 1849, Dehn helped edit J.S. Bach's instrumental music for

1794-405: The day to read, more for amusement than improvement, and shun their classical lessons by the use of English translations." On Cogswell's recommendation, the trustees raised the age limit to 16. In Cogswell's judgment, by this act the library "assumed its proper character, and became a place of quiet study, where every one found ample accommodation." The question of a catalog was to Cogswell's mind

1863-509: The end of the Astor Library. It had been an important factor in the intellectual life of New York, and its influence had not been confined to the political or physical boundaries of the city. There were few scholars or investigators in the latter half of the nineteenth century who had not at some time used its collections. It had been conceived in the mind of Joseph Cogswell, a scholar and book lover, and its growth and development followed closely

1932-564: The establishment of a public library appeared in July 1838. At that point, the sum named was $ 350,000, and included a lot of land for the necessary building. One immediate consequence of the announcement was that Astor was beset by innumerable requests for money, and Astor decided to change his planned gift from a donation during his lifetime to a bequest in his will. By March 1839, Cogswell was asking Astor for money to purchase books at an auction, and Astor inquired whether it might not be possible to put

2001-501: The estate of musicologist Edmond de Coussemaker ( Aristoxenos 's Auctores musices antiquissimi (1616) and Vincenzo Galilei ’s Dialogo (1581), as well as volumes from the estate of Henry Aimé Ouvry and several other minor figures. After this year his acquisitions appeared nearly to stop, except for purchases of rare books in 1880 from Ludwig Rosenthal’s Catalogue XXVI (purchased through the New York dealer F. W. Christern). Though Drexel

2070-573: The expansion of the Library. Work on an extension began at once. The designer of the addition was Griffith Thomas . The new building was opened to the public on September 1, 1859, the number of volumes in the library being estimated at about 110,000. Washington Irving, president of the board of trustees , died November 28, 1859; he was succeeded as president by W. B. Astor. Cogswell resigned as superintendent in 1861, and Francis Schroeder, former pupil of his at Round Hill and American minister to Sweden in 1850,

2139-412: The first year the average daily use was about 100 volumes, with a total for the year of about 30,000. No one topic seemed to dominate the rest, though on the whole the fine arts collection was the most extensively used. The number of readers in the first year varied from 30 for the lowest day to 150 for the highest. For some time, the library was beset by crowds of schoolboys who "come in at certain hours of

Drexel Collection - Misplaced Pages Continue

2208-481: The form of consecutive numbering, 1 through 6013 (some volumes contained many pamphlets or smaller works bound together). Although it has moved several times since its inception, the Music Division continues to house the Drexel Collection under special conditions for reasons of preservation. Albrecht's interests were German music theory and history, as well as contemporaneous German and American publications. Once in

2277-655: The hands of Drexel, he sought to enhance publications in French. Sixteenth century music theory is well represented. Very little 16th century music is present, though the collection contains Baltazar de Beaujoyeulx 'Ballet de la Reine" from 1582, work known as a forerunner of opera. Thanks to the purchases from the Rimbault sale, the Drexel Collection has a number of unique sources (many of them manuscripts) of early seventeenth-century English music: The following list contains selected publications that have depended on unique materials from

2346-571: The hour for opening was moved at 9 am. Closing time stayed at 5 p.m. except during the short days of the winter months when it took place at 4 or 4:30 pm. Alexander Hamilton, president of the board, died in 1889, and Hamilton Fish was chosen to succeed him as president. After two years, in 1891, Thomas M. Markoe was chosen to the office, which he held until the 1895 consolidation. John Jacob Astor III, son of William B. and grandson of John Jacob Astor, died in 1890, having served as trustee since 1858 and as treasurer since 1868. By his will, $ 400,000

2415-559: The library of Dr. Rene La Roche (1795-1872) (also mentioned as a competing library in Dwight's article) which contained English, French, and Latin publications. In 1869, Drexel published (with Albrecht's assistance) a catalog of the published works in his collection which at the time contained 2,245 volumes. Additional volumes inventorying musical autographs, musical scores, and iconography were planned but were never published. Sometimes Drexel's purchases made for social news. On November 17, 1876,

2484-409: The library received a large collection of official publications relating to India; New Zealand, New South Wales , Canada, Italy, France, Prussia were moved also to make valuable contributions of documents and statistical material. The Hepworth Dixon collection of English Civil War pamphlets, about five hundred in number, was presented in 1880 by John Jacob Astor III. By 1882 nearly half the library

2553-610: The library, The readers average from one to two hundred daily, and they read excellent books, except the young fry, who employ all the hours they are out of school In reading the trashy, as Scott , Cooper , Dickens , Punch , and the Illustrated News . Even this is better than spinning street yarns, and as long as they continue perfectly orderly and quiet, as they now are, I shall not object to their amusing themselves with poor books." — Cogswell, to George Ticknor , 24 February 1854, after his library had been open six weeks For

2622-564: The mutilation of some of the library's volumes. This was apparently done mostly for convenience: Instead of writing down extracts, readers cut out the sections with the information they needed. Volumes consulted had increased from 59,516 in 1860 to 135,065 in 1875. In 1875, W. B. Astor died and left $ 249,000 to the library. Besides this bequest, the library received $ 10,000 for the purchase of books from his son, John Jacob Astor III , in February 1876. Alexander Hamilton (1816–1889) became president of

2691-435: The new catalog was issued, but revision of the subject group continued as occasion offered until after the 1895 consolidation. After 1880, three card catalogs continued until the 1895 consolidation: (1) an official "Bulletin", on large cards, for works acquired after 1880, mainly an author arrangement; (2) the public "small card" catalog, a dictionary catalog of authors and subjects; (3) the official "small card" catalog, likewise

2760-524: The particular topics which Astor wished to have represented most thoroughly. The necessary detail extended to a catalog that must necessarily belong to the collection. This was agreeable to Astor. By May 1839, Astor had set aside a sum of $ 400,000 for a free public library. For books, $ 120,000 was allocated, and trustees were to be Washington Irving , William B. Astor , Daniel Lord, Jr. , James G. King , Joseph G. Cogswell , Fitz-Greene Halleck , Henry Brevoort, Jr. , Samuel B. Ruggles , Samuel Ward III , and

2829-430: The planning for the library into the hands of others, thus freeing himself from all care and trouble about it. Cogswell developed such a strategy, and Astor assented to it on the condition that Cogswell be in charge of buying books. Cogswell emphasized the necessity for complete planning for the proposed library, not merely for the building and other accommodations, but for the character of the library to be formed, and for

Drexel Collection - Misplaced Pages Continue

2898-426: The policies he had planned and prepared. The popular library and the scholar's library seemed to belong to two irreconcilable categories, though a generation later it was found that the two could co-exist peacefully under the same roof. The Astor Library suffered from its name. There was actually no proprietorship, and no question of family fiefdom. It was a free public library. But the public, though free to criticize,

2967-468: The public. By 1879 the library had 189,114 volumes on its shelves. Space was lacking. Thus on December 5, 1879, John Jacob Astor III donated three lots of ground adjoining the northern side of the library's lot for an addition. The designer of this second addition was Thomas Stent. Both expansions followed Saelzer's original design so seamlessly that an observer cannot detect that the edifice was built in three stages. On October 10, 1881, this second addition

3036-454: The railing to take down books for examination themselves. There was interest in evening hours, but the increased expense this would have entailed and the danger of fire from gas lighting prevented it. The books were classified using the system in Brunet's Manuel du Libraire which Cogswell thought the most complete and most generally known. "Everything goes on very smoothly among the habitués of

3105-503: The said portion of my library, and an agreement to keep the same separated from all other books or collections of books, and to preserve the same in separate shelves or cases, to be labeled "Drexel Musical Library." "The collection of musical works in his library is considered one of the finest in the United States..." reported the New York Herald in its obituary of Drexel. The trustees of the Lenox Library voted on June 7, 1888 to accept

3174-458: The sums spent for books and binding being $ 6,245.06 and $ 24,074 respectively. Appreciation of the library as shown by statistics of readers grew slowly but steadily, the average number for the decade 1880–1889 being 59,000 readers per year, and for the next six years rising to 70,000. About the same result is indicated by the figures of volumes consulted, the number rising from 146,136 in 1880 to 167,584 in 1890 and to 225,477 in 1895. Also during 1880,

3243-472: The winter of 1848–1849, spending something over $ 20,000. The distracted political state of Europe at the time seemed to offer peculiar advantages for purchases at low rates. Before he sailed, Cogswell reported that during Astor's lifetime he had paid $ 2,500 for books. In 1851, Cogswell sailed abroad again. During that summer, he scoured France, Italy, the Netherlands, Denmark, Scandinavia and Germany. The result

3312-726: Was Robbins Little , a graduate of Yale . He retained the position as superintendent until 1896, after the 1895 consolidation. That the library was considered something more than a local institution was demonstrated in 1878 when the United States Sanitary Commission , having completed its task, donated its archives to the library for safe keeping. The archives consisted of all its correspondence, reports, account books, hospital directories, printed reports, histories, maps and charts, claims of some 51,000 soldiers and sailors investigated by it, miscellaneous papers, etc. The library promised that they would be preserved and accessible to

3381-463: Was "one of the most complete in America." The Icarian community at Nauvoo failed by 1856 and its members dispersed. In 1858, Albrecht sold his library to Joseph W. Drexel and moved to Philadelphia . Drexel was a banker in the midst of a very profitable career as a partner in the firm Drexel, Morgan & Co. With Albrecht's assistance, Drexel kept adding to his library. In 1865, he purchased portions of

3450-400: Was $ 11,664.31, expenses $ 8,975.31. By 1868, those who had been most intimately connected with its founding had nearly all died. The character of the collection was fixed and was known throughout the United States. Schroeder served for 10 years, his resignation being accepted on June 7, 1871. His successor was Edward R. Straznicky , who had been employed in the library since 1859. The library

3519-530: Was a free public library in the East Village, Manhattan , developed primarily through the collaboration of New York City merchant John Jacob Astor and New England educator and bibliographer Joseph Cogswell and designed by Alexander Saeltzer . It was primarily meant as a research library, and its books did not circulate. It opened to the public in 1854, and in 1895 consolidated with the Lenox Library and

SECTION 50

#1732851204731

3588-456: Was a major reference and research resource, but there were detractors. An editorial in The New York Times complained, "Popular it certainly is not, and, so greatly is it lacking in the essentials of a public library, that its stores might almost as well be under lock and key, for any access the masses of the people can get thereto." An article in The Sun of March 4, 1873, reported problems with

3657-518: Was an active concert and opera attendee in the years of his retirement, very few contemporary musical works are present in his collection. An active philanthropist and a board member of several institutions after his retirement in 1877, Drexel made known his intention was that his library be donated to the Lenox Library upon his death. He died during the Great Blizzard of 1888 . It was with surprise that newspapers noted that his will contained only

3726-520: Was an addition of 28,000 volumes secured for $ 30,000, bringing the total of the collection to about 55,000 or 60,000 volumes, and the total outlay to about $ 65,000. In November 1852, Cogswell was again authorized to travel to Europe, $ 25,000 being put at his disposal. He sailed early in December, and remained abroad until March, spending his time mainly in London, Paris, Brussels , Hamburg , and Berlin. The result

3795-473: Was appointed in his place. Cogswell still retained his place as a trustee. In 1862 W. B. Astor established an annuity fund of $ 5,000, yielding $ 300, payable to Cogswell in return for the bibliographical collection he had presented to the library. In 1864, Cogswell left New York to make his home in Cambridge, Massachusetts , and resigned as a trustee. A gift of $ 50,000 from W. B. Astor came in 1866, of which $ 20,000

3864-410: Was borne by John Jacob Astor III and amounted to nearly $ 40,000. With the publication complete, Nelson left the library in 1888. The card catalogs presented a problem of greater complexity. The 1876 card catalog begun by Brevoort recorded a part of the accessions received after 1866. There was one set of cards for the use of the public, and another duplicate set for official use. This was at first mainly

3933-410: Was chosen for the institution at the second meeting on June 1. On September 28, a location was finalized for the building, in what is now the East Village, Manhattan . There it was judged to be tranquil enough to be suitable for study. The lot was valued at $ 25,000, which sum was deducted from the $ 400,000 of the endowment. On January 18, 1849, the library was incorporated, and received a paragraph in

4002-469: Was free for all persons over 14 years of age. On opening day, the building was stocked with between 80,000 and 90,000 volumes, purchased at a cost of about $ 100,000. The section on American history was as full as possible. In linguistics , particularly oriental, the library was unsurpassed by any in the United States. The natural sciences were also fully represented, comprising about 7,000 volumes. Cogswell had made his first trip abroad for purchase of books in

4071-499: Was in his 70s and had been retired for about 10 years. As the richest citizen of the United States, German-born Astor was considering what sort of testimonial he should leave to his adopted country. Early in January 1838, Astor consulted Cogswell about the use of some $ 300,000–$ 400,000, which he intended to leave for public purposes. Cogswell urged him to use it for a library, which Astor agreed to. A public announcement of Astor's plan for

4140-489: Was left destitute by the failure of the family bank in 1830 and decided to devote himself to music; he soon became known and respected widely as a musical theorist and teacher. In 1842, composer Giacomo Meyerbeer recommended Dehn to fill the post of custodian of the Prussian royal library. Dehn threw himself into cataloging the collection, bringing it into order and adding to it copiously from libraries all over Prussia . Among

4209-406: Was left to the library. As William Waldorf Astor declined to fill the vacancy, the board ceased to have an Astor on it. At the time of consolidation the trustees, in order of seniority, were Markoe, Henry Drisler , John Lambert Cadwalader , Henry C. Potter , Stephen Van Rensselaer Cruger, Little, Stephen Henry Olin, King, Charles Howland Russell and Philip Schuyler. The 1895 consolidation marked

SECTION 60

#1732851204731

4278-694: Was one of the organizers of the Germania Musical Society , a touring orchestra in which he was the second clarinetist. Visiting many locations in the United States enabled Albrecht to collect music literature and scores. The Society disbanded in 1854, while in residence at Newport, Rhode Island . That year, Albrecht decided to join the Icarians in Nauvoo, Illinois , which required that members donate all their belongings. Albrecht created an inventory of his collection of 661 volumes, intending to donate them to

4347-556: Was open to the public, the library being closed the four months preceding to allow the necessary moving and readjustment. During 1879 the Japanese government presented a representation of their national literature, embracing the standard works of poetry , fiction , geography , history , religion , philology , together with an assortment of ornamental designs; through Viscount Cranbrook , secretary for India in Beaconsfield's cabinet,

4416-652: Was reluctant to contribute towards its support. That was left to the Astors. The NYPL abandoned the building in 1911, and the books were moved to the NYPL's newly constructed building by Bryant Park. In 1920, the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society purchased it. By 1965 it was in disuse and faced demolition. The Public Theater (then the New York Shakespeare Festival) persuaded the city to purchase it for use as

4485-639: Was selected as the architect for the building. He designed the building in Rundbogenstil style, then the prevailing style for public building in Germany. The limitation of the cost of the building at $ 75,000 was stringent: the trustees wanted a building to hold 100,000 volumes at the outset, to afford convenient accommodation for annual additions, to be fireproof, and have the necessary strength; these requirements were by no means easily secured for this sum. W. B. Astor, Cogswell, and Saeltzer drew up specifications and called for bids for construction. All bids exceeded

4554-486: Was the addition of about 25,000 volumes. The Astor Library's policy of being universally free, to foreigners as well as to United States citizens, also allowed it to successfully apply for donations of important and costly scientific, statistical and historical works published by different governments of Europe. A very practical appreciation of the library was shown by donations received from the federal government, from learned societies and from individuals in various parts of

4623-419: Was unrecorded in a catalog except in the shape of brief entries noted in manuscript in interleaved copies of the Cogswell catalog, and cards begun by Brevoort in 1876. A new author catalog was decided on, to include titles of all works received since the first catalog was published, and for this work Charles Alexander Nelson was hired in 1881. Nelson was a Harvard graduate fitted for this new task by service in

4692-530: Was used for purchase of books, the remainder was for the general funds of the library. This gift brought the sum total presented by him to $ 300,000, not to mention the installation of a new system of heating apparatus in 1867 for which he paid $ 6,545.74. Of the $ 700,000 received from the Astors, father and son (increased about two per cent, by investments, etc.) $ 283,324.98 was expended for site, building, and equipment; $ 203,012.38 for books, binding, freight, etc., leaving an endowment fund of $ 229,000. The income in 1866

4761-528: Was well-known, and it was with dismay that The Musical Times reported: "all [the English unica] should have been purchased for the British Museum : now unfortunately it is too late, as a large proportion are on their way to New York." (Purchases for Drexel at the Rimbault auction were made by the London firm of Joseph Sabin & Sons.) In 1877, Drexel also instructed Sabin to purchase at least two volumes from

#730269