When I contemplate the extent to which the moral sentiments, the intelligence, the affections of so many millions of people—sealed up by a sacred charm within the cover of a letter—daily circulate thorugh a country, I am compelled to regard the Post Office as the right arm of our modern civilization
— Edward Everett
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In 1733 a young Ben Franklin took the unusual step of including humor, some of it pithy, some of it pointed, in the usually dry astronomical and agricultural charts of an almanac, creating the famous persona of Poor Richard. This book is a facsimile of the first edition, Poor Richard, 1733 an Almanack: For the Year of Christ 1733. |
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Fifty-seven letters on scientific topics from Franklin to individuals and publications are collected in The Ingenious Dr. Franklin: Selected Scientific Letters of Benjamin Franklin. |
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Benjamin Franklin published at least 5 editions of Experiments and Observations on Electricity (see page 6) between 1751 and 1774, and editors since his time have added more versions. Many of them may be available in libraries; check Worldcat to find one of them in a library near you. Several pages, including one with illustrations, can be viewed here; click on the + sign on the small illustrations to see 2-page spreads (turn off your popup blocker if you have one). Check out a scan of the January 2, 1750 Pennsylvania Gazette "Printed by B. Franklin, Post-Master" – and note how the early typesetting, which used a character that looked very much like "f" for "s", makes it appears that the good ship Amphitrite is advertising its ability to fail... A replica on antiqued parchment of a 1729 edition is available for sale. In the October 2, 1729 edition (the one shown on the commemorative stamp), Franklin explained to the reader how he intended to carry on as new editor. The B. Free Franklin Post Office and Museum, at the site of Franklin's house in Philadelphia, is the only active U.S. post office that does not fly the U.S. flag, because it didn't yet exist when Franklin was appointed Postmaster General of the colonies in 1775. (Franklin had been Postmaster of Philadelphia since 1737 and Postmaster General of the colonies under British rule since 1753, but was dismissed by the Crown in 1774 because of his activities supporting the developing revolution.) It still uses the postmark "B. Free Franklin" to cancel stamps. The post office and museum are #21 on a walking tour of historic Philadelphia. A 1766 letter bearing the "B. Free" frank can be viewed here. Franklin's Autobiography is available for free reading at Gutenberg. |
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Most of the history of the Post Office Department (now USPS) is full of dense ("dry" to non-history buffs) detail, but Barbara A. Somervill's The History of the Post Office, intended for a young audience, uses text and historical photographs to cover the subject in a short book. |
| Lewis Carroll in The World of Letters |
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A year after Charles Dodgson's death, his nephew Stuart Dodgson Collingwood published Life and Letters of Lewis Carroll, which gave the explanation, now considered a myth, that Dodgson wrote to and for children because he was unable to relate successfully to adults, a theme later biographers cheerfully expanded on, sometimes by simply inventing their "facts". Many other editions of Dodgson's letters are available. |
| Ink |
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| Want to know more about ink (page 20)? Check out this 2004 Christian Science Monitor Kidspace column. Recipes for making traditional ink are available, from the (relatively) simple to the more complex, though finding the ingredients may be a bit of a challenge. | |
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The Ladies' Battle in Letters | |
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A slightly different text of the Ladies' letters (page 22) can be found in George William Erskine Russell's book Collections and Recollections on Gutenberg. It explains the reference to mutton chops in the fourth letter – the third letter had been accompanied by a drawing, presumably somewhat humorous, of "the little Shuckburghs" enjoying Mary Steadman's mutton chops while Lady Shuckburgh looks on disapprovingly. The Eglinton Tournament was an expensively-produced jousting contest staged by the 13th Lord Eglinton at Eglinton Castle on August 27, 1839, despite unfavorable weather in the form of heavy rain and reports at the time that the jousting was much sanitized from its dangerous historical reality. Lithographs of the tournament can be seen here; the National Portrait Gallery has an engraving of the Queen of Beauty. |
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