Description: This image shows examples of personalized bookplate designs from the Antioch Bookplate Company's 1931 catalog, page 20. The page features four bookplates, each with a different design and typography. The bookplates have engraved black-and-white images, and the quartet of bookplates is displayed on a turquoise background. The business was founded in 1926 by Ernest Morgan and Walter Kahoe, two enterprising work-study students at Antioch College, Yellow Springs, Ohio. They worked in the college's printing shop and came up with a novel idea for using the accumulated scrap paper: making decorative bookmarks and bookplates. With the college's blessing, they launched the Antioch Bookplate Company. Kahoe eventually sold his share in the business to Morgan, who then expanded the company into a highly successful operation. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05873
Subjects: Cultural Ohio--Literary Ohio; Antioch Bookplate Company; Bookplates; Catalogs; Books and reading
 

Description: The design of this bookplate of Mary E. Rath Merrill, Columbus, Ohio, is symbolically rich. The inscription in the frame reads: "My soul what gracious glorious powers to hue and radiance God has given," followed by the attribution "Cautley Emblems." The attribution may refer to "A Century of Emblems," a book published in 1878 by Rev. George Spencer Cautley, a scholar and collector of emblems. The design includes a quote from poet and Anglican priest George Herbert (1593-1633): "What is fairer than a rose, what is sweeter?" It also includes a motto in Latin: "Patior Putior." Rath-Merrill and this bookplate are mentioned in the book "Some American College Bookplates" (1915) by Harry Parker Ward, Winward Prescott, and Theodore Wesley Koch. The relevant text reads: "The heraldry is: the Crest, the emblem of the Blessed Virgin as patron saint. The dexter shield contains the arms of learned societies to which Mrs. Rath-Merrill belongs. The plate is surmounted by the Mystic Rose. The Tree 'Igdrasel' or tree of knowledge, with its three roots and sleeping serpent suggests the power of knowledge over ignorance. Mrs. Rath-Merrill has taken an important part in the restoration of Ecclesiastical Symbolism and Embroidery to its former high position. She designed the famous symbolic Ohio Memorial Bookplate for the Ohio Alcove in the American Library of Manilla [sic], the engraving being done by Mr. W.F. Hopson." This page identifies Rath-Merrill as the principal of Columbus School of Applied Decoration and Art. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05718
Subjects: Cultural Ohio--Literary Ohio; Bookplates; Books and reading
 

Description: The Ohio Memorial Gift Plate of the Columbus Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution to the American Library in Manila was presented in 1902 by Mary E. Rath-Merrill to the Columbus Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. The purpose of the gift was to mark the books in the Ohio Memorial Alcove of the American Library in Manila and to purchase additional volumes for this collection through the sale of proofs signed in autography and the ordinary impressions of the plate to individuals and to institutions collecting bookplates. These copies were intended for books in the Ohio alcove in the American Library at Manila. Reading "In God W Trust To Our Fallen Heroes," the design is framed in a border of buckeyes, the emblem of the state of Ohio. In the center of the design is a tablet upon which rests the Bible. Around the tablet is the Palm Wreath of Victory, while above it is a winged hourglass, held by a chain. Behind and supporting Daughters of the American Revolution and the seal of the state of Ohio. In the center and directly over the arched window in the library alcove is the shield containing the arms of the United States. Through the open window are ships and emblems of war, in reference to the navy and the army. On either side of the library alcove is a Corinthian column, encircled by a Chain of Love and surmounted by the Lamp of Truth. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05719
Subjects: Cultural Ohio--Literary Ohio; Bookplates; Books and reading
 

Description: This photograph shows a bookplate of Flamen Ball, Jr. (1809-1885), a Cincinnati attorney who was a law partner of Salmon P. Chase. The design features a shield decorated with three stars above a lion. A leaping stag is located above the shield. A wreath of oak leaves is tied with an an armorial ribbon bearing the Latin motto "Semper caveto," meaning "Be always on guard." Born in New York City, Ball moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, and studied law. Ball clerked for Chase before being admitted to the bar. He became United States District Attorney for Southern Ohio, but in 1862 he was commissioned a captain in the Union Army and served as an aide-de-camp to Gen. John E. Wool during the Civil War. After the war Ball resumed his law practice. He died in Glendale, Ohio, at age 76. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05714
Subjects: Cultural Ohio--Literary Ohio; Bookplates; Books and reading; Ball, Flamen
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)
 

Description: This bookplate of Ophelia Fowler Duhme (dated 1854) shows a corner of a reading room or study with a frame. The owner's name and the date are inscribed on a drapery that hangs from the upper right corner. A desk and lamp are visible in the middle ground, in front of a bookcase. In the foreground are two cherubic infants busy reading and writing. Between them is a crest bearing Duhme's monogramed initials. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05715
Subjects: Cultural Ohio--Literary Ohio; Bookplates; Books and reading
 

Description: This engraved bookplate of Ophelia Fowler Duhme displays two banners placed over a field of leaves and berries (presumably strawberries). The top banner reads "ex libris" ("from the books") and the second bears Duhme's name. At the bookplate's top edge is the motto "Inter folia fructus" ("between the leaves, fruit"). "Brightside" is the name of the Charles and Ophelia Duhme House, Clifton Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio. Charles H. Duhme, jeweler and silversmith, married Olivia Fowler in 1888. "Brightside" was the name of their estate located on Clifton Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05716
Subjects: Cultural Ohio--Literary Ohio; Bookplates; Books and reading
 

Description: The bookplate of James McBride of Hamilton, Ohio, features a drawing of a contemplative scene. A seated woman is holding a book in her right hand, her chin resting on her left hand. A tree on either side of her frame the scene. A poem at the top of the bookplate reads: "An elegant sufficiency, content,/Retirement, rural quiet, friendship, books,/Ease and alternate labour, useful life,/Progressive, virtue, and approving Heaven!" The Motto reads "Pro aris et focis" ("For our altars and hearths"), which was used to express attachment to everything most dear. The name "James McBride," written in script, appears at the bottom edge. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05717
Subjects: Cultural Ohio--Literary Ohio; Bookplates; Books and reading
 

Description: This bookplate of Mary Edith Nichols, Cincinnati, ca. 1900, features an image of a woman contained within an oval frame. The woman, whose back faces the viewer, is wearing old-fashioned attire, including a close-fitting cap. She is sitting at table reading a book. In the background is a spinning-wheel. The text reads: "Ex Libris" and "Mary Edith Nichols." The designer's signature ("M. Bridwell 1897" sits at the bottom left corner of the frame. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05720
Subjects: Cultural Ohio--Literary Ohio; Bookplates; Books and reading
 

Description: This bookplate of Edward C. Ranck has an image of a man reading a book in a study or a library. Bookshelves form a backdrop for the man, who wears the large, flat cap and flowing robes of a Renaissance scholar. The bookplate's title is "Reading Maketh a Full Man." Text at the bottom reads: "Edward C. Rank His Book." View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05721
Subjects: Cultural Ohio--Literary Ohio; Bookplates; Books and reading
 

Description: This bookplate of Maribel Schumaker, dated 1908, portrays what appears to be the library in a private residence. Furnishings include a bookshelf lined with many volumes, a desktop decorated with several volumes, a flower-filled vase, and two masks that symbolize Comedy and Tragedy. Above the bookshelf is a large portrait of a woman and a young child. A window looks out on a street scene that shows a large house and a child pulling a sled. Two owls perched on a tree branch outside the window are peering into the room. A banner with text reads: "Ex Libris Maribel Shumaker 1908." View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05723
Subjects: Cultural Ohio--Literary Ohio; Bookplates; Books and reading
 

Description: This bookplate of Clara Prentis Sherwin (1861-1939) depicts an outdoor scene that includes trees, flowers, rock wall, and gate. In the distance are three triangular mountain peaks. In front of the wall is a wooden post and a sign bearing the motto "Droit et Avant" (literally, "right and forward" but translated as "be right and then [proceed] forward"). Note: This phrase is the motto of the Inspector General, U.S. Army. Clara Prentis Sherwin was the eldest daughter of Nelson Boynton Sherwin (1832-1911) and Elizabeth Martha Kidder (1834-?). She was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and was active in charitable causes, most notably the Rainbow Cottage Foundation, of which she was president from 1911-1915. Rainbow Cottage was a precursor to Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital, Cleveland, Ohio. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05724
Subjects: Cultural Ohio--Literary Ohio; Bookplates; Books and reading
 

Description: This bookplate of Ella Beatty Shoenberger (1845-1924) is dominated by a drawing of Scarlet Oaks, her family's estate, which is located in the Clifton neighborhood, Cincinnati, Ohio. The house is framed by two branches of oak leaves and acorns tied together by a ribbon with the caption "Scarlet Oaks." A banner at the top reads "Ex Libris," and the name "Ella Beatty Shoenberger" appears at the bottom edge. Ella Beatty Shoenberger was the wife of steel magnate George K. Shoenberger (1809-1892). Designed in the Gothic Revival and Romanesque styles by architect James Key Wilson, Scarlet Oaks was built and decorated from 1866 until 1870. It was named for the naturalistic landscaping that had been developed by the previous owner of the site, horticulturist Dr. John Warder. Scarlet Oaks is listed on the National Register of Historic Places; today, it is a retirement community. After her husband's death, Ella Shoenberger married Charles Albert Harriss (1862-1929), a Canadian impresario, composer, organist-choirmaster, conductor, and educator. The signature, "McCord.Cin.," may refer to William Alexander McCord (1858-1918), a self-taught designer, artist, and amateur photographer who was active in the Cincinnati art community. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05725
Subjects: Cultural Ohio--Literary Ohio; Bookplates; Books and reading