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| Pleasewell Series: 5 Little Pigs Representative Cover |
This blog post by Mary Katherine May of Quality Music and Books
Any way you look at it, McLoughlin Brothers published many children's books. They are fun to collect but hard to find in excellent condition.
The following information is from the 1903 McLoughlin Bros. catalog and shows information on its 2-, 3, 5- and 10-cent book offerings. This information will be helpful to both collectors and booksellers in identifying and describing particular editions. You will notice that though there are books in only one series, many books appear in several series. Book size will be important in determining which series a book is in as will also printing colors.
CLICK HERE To view the entire 1903 McLoughlin Bros. Catalogue on Archive.Org.
CLICK HERE to read more about the publisher McLoughlin Bros. on Wikipedia.org.
CLICK HERE to read more about McLoughlin Bros., Pioneers in Color Printing.
The McLoughlin Brothers published their 55th
annual catalogue in 1903. Products were organized by price beginning with
2-cent toy books.
In 1903, the McLoughlin catalog offered the following products: Paper and linen toy books, half-bound and bound
juvenile books, card games, board games, ABC blocks, picture blocks, building
blocks, backgammon boards, chess boards, scroll puzzles, novelties, paper
dolls, paper soldiers, flags, lead soldiers, and pictures for framing and
advertising purposes, etc. Also valentines of every description, and Easter,
Christmas, New Year, birthday, and religious cards.
The publications of 1903 contained at least one blatantly racial title, the book in No. 73, Bo-Peep Series.
2-cent Books
No. 2 ABC Series
4 books
12 pages, 4-3/4x6-3/4 inches, large alphabets
in red and black
1. ABC of the Apple Pie
2. ABC of Animals
3. Little Learner’s ABC
4. Baby’s Own ABC
No. 4 Hop O’ My Thumb Series
6 books
10 pages, 5-1/2 x 7-3/4 inches, printed in red
and black
1. Hop O’ My Thumb
2. Blue Beard
3. Puss in Boots
4. Sleeping Beauty
5. Red Riding Hood
6. Cinderella
No. 5 Dame Trot Series
6 books
10 pages, 5-1/2x7-3/4 inches, printed in black
and red
1. Five Little Pigs
2. Bo-Peep
3. Old Mother Goose
4. Dame Trot
5. Song of Sixpence
6. Old Woman Who Live in a Shoe
No. 6 Yellow Dwarf Series
6 books
12 pages, 5-1/2x7-3/4 inches, printed in red
and black
No. 7 White Cat Series
6 Books
12 pages, 5-1/2x7-3/4 inches, printed in red
and black
No. 8 May Bell Series
6 Books
10 pages, 5-1/2 x 7-3/4 inches, printed in red
and black
No. 9 Robin Hood Series
6 Books
10 pages, 5-1/2 x 7-3/4 inches, large type printed
in red and black
3-cent Books
No. 11 Little Miss Muffet Series
6 Books
These books are bright and clever.
10 pages, 5-1/2 x 7-3/4 inches, all printed in
full colors, covers in full colors and gold
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| Pleasewell Series Mother Hubbard and Her Dog This copy "Mounted on Linen." |
No. 12 Pleasewell Series
6 Books.
10 pages, 5-1/2 x 7-3/4 inches, printed in full
colors
Mounted on Linen: Books that are named "mounted on linen" will sometimes show linen strings at book edges. The linen inside heavyweight paper were claimed to be untearable.
1. The Three Little Kittens
2. The Five Little Pigs
3. The House That Jack Built
4. The Old Woman and Her Pig
5. Dame Trot and Her Cat
6. Mother Hubbard and Her Dog
No. 14 Farm Yard ABC Series
6 Books
10 pages, 6 x 9 inches, printed in colors.
An ABC book with pictures of Cattle, Poultry,
Pigs, etc.
No. 15 Red Riding Hood Series
6 Books
10 pages, 5-1/2 x 7-3/4 inches, 4 of which are
in full colors.
1. Cinderella
2. Robinson Crusoe
3. Little Red Riding Hood
4. Favorite Nursery Tales
5. Pauline and the Matches
6. Simple Simon
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| Apple Pie ABC. No. 20 Alphabet Series |
No. 20 Alphabet Series
4 Books
14 pages of which 6 are in full colors, 6-1/4 x
8 inches
1. Adventures of ABC
2. Apple Pie ABC
3. Merry Alphabet
4. Jolly Animal ABC
No. 21 Wonder Story Series
6 Books
6-1/2 x 9-1/2 inches
These books contain 6 full pages colored eight
in plain pictures
1. Rip Van Winkel
2. Robin Hood
3. Robinson Crusoe
4. Ali Baba
5. Jack the Giant Killer
6. Alladdin
5-cent Books
No. 22 Good Two Shoes Series
6-1/2 x 9 inches
These books contain six colored pages, and six
pages of pictures and text.
1. Goody Two Shoes
2. Aladdin
4. Baby’s ABC
5. The Forty Thieves
6. Children in the Wood
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| Domestic Animals copyright 1900 Representative Cover |
No. 23 Little Animal Series
3 Books
6-3/4 x 8 inches
10 pages, 4 of which are in full colors. Covers
in full colors and gold and varnished.
1. Domestic Animals
2. Wild Animals
3. Farmyard ABC
No. 24 Noah’s Ark ABC Series
6 x 9 inches
These books contain 12 pages, eight of which
are in colors
1. Every Baby’s ABC
2. Little Boys’ and Girls’ ABC
3. Noah’s Ark ABC
No. 25 Kriss Kringle Series
6 Books
6-1/2 x 9 inches, 10 pages
1. Robinson Crusoe
2. Jack and the Bean Stalk
3. Apple Pie ABC
4. Baby’s ABC
5. Tom Thumb
6. Kriss Kringle
No. 26 Pearl Series
6 Books
6-1/4 x 7-3/4 inches. 10 pages, 4 of which are
in full colors
1. Tiny Tot’s Treasure
2. Farmyard Frolics
3. Pets at Play
4. Little Sweethearts
No. 27 Young America Series
4 Books
6-1/4 x 7-3/4 inches. 10 pages, 4 of which and
cover are in full colors.
1. Happy Hearts
2. Animal Antics
3. Mirth and Mischief
4. Childhood Joys
No. 28 Little Gem Series
6 Books
6-1/2 x 9-1/2 inches
These books are excellent for small children. Each
book has 4 full-color pages and 8 pages in special text. The covers are in full
colors.
No. 28-1/2 Little Santa Claus Series
6-1/4 x 7-3/4 inches. 10 pages, 4 of which and the
covers are in full colors.
1. Little Miss, Pretty Miss
2. Santa Claus and His Doings
3. A Visit from Saint Nicholas
4. Girls and Boys Come Out to Play
No. 29 Little Sister’s ABC
5 x 7 inches. This book contains ten colored
pages and cover, all lithographed. A simple ABC book.
No. 30 Natural History Series
6 Books
6-1/2 x 9-1/2 inches
These are useful little animal books. Each book
has 4 full color pages and 8 pages in text. The covers are in full colors.
No. 31 Major’s Alphabet
6 x 9 inches. This book contains ten colored
pages. A good alphabet book.
No. 32 Nursery ABC Simple Speller
6 x 9 inches, 12 pages. This is an easy lesson
primer.
No. 33 Sunshine Series
6 Books
6-1/2 x 9 inches. 10 pages, 4 of which and
covers are in full colors.
1. Three Bears
2. Silly Hare
3. Cock Robin
4. Cinderella
5. Three Little Pigs
6. Frog a Wooing Go
No. 36 Merry Christmas Series
6-3/4 x 9-3/4 inches. 10 pages of special red
and black pictures and type. Covers in full colors.
1. Merry Christmas ABC
2. Baby Bunting ABC
3. Little Darling ABC
4. Playtime ABC
No. 46 Little Folks’ Series
4 Books
6-1/4 x 8 inches. Selected old fairy stories.
Six pages and covers in colors.
No. 50 Little Fairy Tales Series
6 Books
6-1/2 x 9-1/2 inches
Old standard fairy stories. 14 pages, 14 of which
are in full colors. Covers in full colors and gold.
No. 51 Dame Dingle Series
6 – 9-1/2 inches. 8 full-color pictures.
1. Wandering Bunny
2. Dog’s Dinner Party
3. Rich Mrs. Duck
4. Cats’ Party
5. Spoilt Piggy Wiggy
6. Kings Gobble’s Feast
No. 52 Joyful Tales
6 Books
2. Cock Robin
3. Robber Kitten
4. Dame Trot
No. 55 Snowflake Series
4 Books
6-1/4 x 8 inches. For winter and Christmas
time.
1. Santa Claus and His Works
2. The Robin’s Christmas Eve
3. Frisky the Squirrel
4. Hector the Dog
10-cent Books
No. 37 ABC of Animals and Nature
8-1/2 x 10 inches. 6 pages in full colors.
Covers in full colors.
No. 38 Punch and Judy Series
4 Books
7-1/2 x 9-1/2 inches. 32 pages. Covers in full
colors and varnished.
1. Three Little Kittens
2. The Giant Killer
3. Jingles and Joes
4. Heedless Harry
No. 38-1/2 Cozy Corner Series
4 Books
7-1/2 x 9-1/2 inches. 32 pages of special stories
and pictures. Covers are in full colors and gold and varnished.
No. 39 Yankee Doodle ABC Book.
6 x 9-1/2 inches. A special rhyming alphabet
primer. 12 pages. Every page is illustrated with colored pictures. The large AC
letters have a Star and Stripes designs in them. 17 colored pictures in the book.
No. 40 Our Little Ones ABC
6 x 9-1/2 inches. Rhyming alphabet primer. 12
pages illustrated in full colors. The ABC letters are in dark blue and black.
17 full-colored pictures in book.
No. 41 Tiny Tots ABC Book
6 x 9-1/2 inches. Special rhyming ABC primer.
12 pages illustrated in full colors. ABC letters in red and black. 17
full-colored pictures in book.
No. 42 Simple Simon Series
6 Books
6 x 10-1/2 inches. Each book contains 14 pages,
6 of which are in full colors.
1. Simple Simon
2. Robber Kitten
3. The Owl and the Fox
4. Little Soldier Boy
5. Jack and the Beanstalk
6. All About Santa Claus
No. 62 Froggie Series
3 Books
7 x 10 inches. 14 pages, 6 of which are in full
colors. Cover in full colors, gold and varnished.
No. 63 Little Menagerie Series
3 Books
7 x 10 inches. 14 pages, 6 of which are in full
colors, gold and varnished.
No. 54 Home Primer
91-4/ x 7-3/4 inches. Book contains 50 pictures
and three alphabets, also simple reading lessons. Covers in full colors.
No. 56 Aunt Kate Series
6 Books
7-1/2 x 10-1/2 inches. Each book contains 14
pages, 6 of which are in full colors.
1. Children in the Wood
2. Aladdin
3. Red Riding Hood
4. Valentine and Orson
5. Robinson Crusoe
6. Blue Beard
No. 57 Pretty Picture Series
4 Books
7-1/2 x 10-/12 inches. Each book contains 14
pages, 6 of which are in full lithographic colors.
1. Little Darlings
2. Pretty ABC
3. Pretty Children
4. Laugh and Learn
No. 72 Our Baby’s Series
4 Books
Books contain 14 full colored pages.
1. By Land and Water
2. Around the World with Santa Claus
3. Our Baby’s ABC
4. The House That Jack Built
No. 73 Bo-Peep Series
4 Books
7 x 6 inches. Books contain 14 pages printed in
full colors.
1. Mother Goose Melodies
2. Ten Little N….
3. A Visit of St. Nicholas
4. Simple Simon
No. 123 Frolic Series
3 Books
7 x 10 inches. Books contain 14 pages, 6 of
which are in full colors. Covers in full colors and gold and varnished.
No. 124 Garden Series
3 Books
7 x 10 inches. Books contain 14 pages, 6 of
which are in full colors. Covers in full colors and gold and varnished.
