My out-of-print and antiquarian bookshop was located outside Philadelphia in Haddonfield, NJ, from 1990 to 1995. During that time many of the books I purchased from collections and estates had the ubiquitous blue pencil pricing on the front paste-down — the signature spot where Leary’s clerks priced their books. I was also fortunate enough to collect a great deal of Leary’s ephemera, but it is time to break up my collection, and hopefully get the pieces back to the Philadelphia area.
LEARY’S BOOK STORE – PHILADELPHIA – SELL YOUR BOOKS – OUR BUYER HERE POSTER
How many of these have survived? A true ephemeral piece on thin poster board measuring about 14 by 22 inches. Location not filled in, but a thumb tack hole is at the top, so it may have been used somewhere – and then treasured instead of tossed.
the small stain you see on the right was on a poster I sold, this one has no stain, but still the thumb tack hole
Price – $35
Shipping – $6.00 packed in cardboard flat and with tracking for your protection.
Shipping happily combined on multiple purchases
LEARY’S BOOK STORE – PHILADELPHIA
TWO CLASSIC BOOKMARKS
Showing you both sides of these bookmarkers – please note there are some small folds from loving use. With a ruler on the backside of one, I have not provided measurements since you can see on the marker.
Price for the pair – $15
Shipping – $3.95 packed in cardboard and with tracking for your protection.
Shipping happily combined on multiple purchases
c1960 – LEARY’S OF PHILADELPHIA – by DON ROSE
softcover booklet (measuring about 6 by 9 inches with 12 pages of text providing history and memories of this Philadelphia institution established in 1836. On Second Street from 1836-1865, Leary’s Book Store was at 9 South Ninth Street until its sad closing in 1969.
Price – $25
Shipping – $3.95 packed in cardboard and with tracking for your protection.
Shipping happily combined on multiple purchases
COMPOSITION BOOKS – The Ultimate Ephemeral Item
Below are three composition books – ruled notebooks – that would have been given to students along with their textbook purchases to use in school for notes, compositions, and the like. Thus how many could have survived? Overall measurements are about 7 inches by about 8 1/4 inches. Each has been used and has faults – but remember, these were given away to be used. What you want from these are the illustrations of 19th century Leary’s both from the street, and the interior – $25 each.
The first booklet illustrated has the date 1915 on the front and 1923 inside. Originally 20 ruled pages, the first few have been torn out, writing remaining on only one page. Three great illustraions
No date on the book below, but the feel and appearance appears to be earlier that the copy above. 22 pages of handwritten musical scores including polkas and waltzes.
This final composition book below is hardcover. The composition pages are long gone, and the remaining sheet with the free endpapers is loose. No date, but the three great illustrations that you could do something with for your vintage library.
FACSIMILE COPY OF 1874 PATENT FOR “A NEW AND IMPROVED PORTABLE COURT FOR
THE ANCIENT GAME OF TENNIS”
There had to be a reason why Leary’s made this eight page booklet measuring about 7 1/4 inches by about 10 1/2 inches – but probably now lost to history. The great thing about this booklet is the rear cover (not shown) that has the image the same as the wrapping paper I sold (see way below). I am pricing this at $20
THE BOOK WORM
100th Anniversary – Leary’s Old Book Store
This give away print overall measures about 9 inches by about 11 1/8 inches. Some faint folds and creases (hard to see) but will still make a proud piece to frame. I have had my own personal copy framed in an early frame, and hanging in my reading room for decades. This is my last copy, and is priced at $35
I will eventually add some more information on these last two lots, and I have one or two more items to add and illustrated. I actually started this page in March 2021, and final made it public in January 2022, so no real rush.
WANTED
A customer recently sent me this (not so great) image of another Leary’s give away she has had for a long time. Framed and with glare on the glass, it is similar to the early Prang wall hanging sayings I proudly own. But this, I NEED TO OWN…
See this little tyke on the left? Hanging in my shop for over 30 years I have this 1913 calendar with the same image — a real treasure.
Below, I thought you may enjoy seeing a few of the items I had, but have already placed in new collections
c1940s – LEARY’S BOOK STORE – PHILADELPHIA – TEXTBOOK COVER ON MATH TEXT BOOK
Talk about an uncommon piece of ephemera, here is a textbook (possibly bought at Leary’s) covered by a book cover they would have given away – and, of course advertising “the largest old book store in America.”
Covered is ESSENTIALS OF TRIGONOMETRY WITH APPLICATIONS by David Raymond Curtiss and Elton James Moulton, D. C. Heath and Company, Boston, (1942), 174 pages followed by HEATH’S LOGARITHMIC AND TRIGONOMETRIC TABLES, Revised Edition by Earnest Jackson Oglesby, (1942), 94 pages. Hey, it is an old text book with little value (but in 1997 I did sell a rare stock market textbook for $12,000), so what you are buying here is the ephemeral bookcover depicting the Ninth Street store and the iconic Bookworm.
LEARY’S BOOK STORE – PHILADELPHIA, PA
BROADSIDE – BOOK WRAPPING PAPER
This piece I was told by “old-timers” who would frequent Leary’s was used to wrap book orders at check out. Measuring about 18 inches by about 24 inches it also makes a nice broadside. Some small tears on the edges and folds, still making a nice item to frame.
Leary’s Book Store was a landmark in downtown Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for nearly one hundred years. In 1969, when it closed, it was known as the “oldest book store in the United States.” In 1836, William A. Leary established a sidewalk book stall on North Second Street in Philadelphia, in close proximity to the Old Market, eventually acquiring a location at No. 138. After the death of Leary, the business was acquired in 1876 by Edwin S. Stuart and Charles Mann and eventually renamed Leary, Stuart, and Co. Stuart moved the business to 9 South Ninth Street in September 1877 to benefit from the relocation of the city government.
Leary’s heyday was during the Golden Age of Books, a period during the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century when books were the key source of entertainment and enlightenment.
After World War II consumers for books moved to suburbia where competing book stores and distance to Leary’s resulted in a declining demand for Leary’s used books.
The bookstore closed on 20 November 1968 because the shift of population to the suburbs diminished its customer base.
During the final cataloging of its remaining book stock for sale at the Freeman auction house, a number of ancient documents, reported to have languished in the stock for 100 years or more, were found among its contents, including an original broadside of the Declaration of Independence dated to 1776. This proved to be a John Dunlap first printing and it sold for over $400,000 at auction.
1936 – THE STORY OF THE BOOKWORM – LEARY’S BOOK STORE, PHILADELPHIA – PLATE and BOOKLET
From an estate I purchased in the earl 1990s – it was three generations of book collectors – comes this collection. An 9 1/2 inch by 11 1/2 inch envelope addressed to the first generation of collectors. Inside is a copy of THE BOOK WORM sent out to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of Leary’s Old Book Store in 1936. This copy (I have my own that I framed years ago) is still in the original glassine, but over time there was some shrinkage to the glassine thus causing some folds on the plate — BUT that is in the margins, and can be matted out easily, in fact my copy the way it is matted you would not see this fault.
AND, really scarce and included is THE STORY OF THE BOOK WORM, a small booklet measuring about 4 1/16 inches by 5 13/16 inches with 8 pages. The frontis is a B&W image of the BOOK WORM plate, and the rear cover a color image of Leary’s Store. Reprinted in 1936 from an article in The Evening Bulletin, laid in is a sheet indicating the recipient would also be receiving a “reproduction in full color of the famous painting.” This family dated (in pencil) almost everything. They received the booklet September 10, 1936. THIS BOOKLET IS EXTREMELY UNCOMMON.
Below you can see the effect the original glassing had on the margins of the plate – easily covered by a mat.
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