Henry Altemus Company

The following are questions submitted via email by our visitors.

If you have a question about Altemus books that you'd like answered please click on the Questions link at the bottom left of this page.

Vademecum Series

Q:  is this book (A Christmas Carol) worth anything? #34 looks nice, small

A:  Your book is part of the Vademecum Series and was published in 1912-1913. It is a reprint.

A hardcore Dicken's fan might pay $10-20 but otherwise it would sell for just a few dollars.

Petit Trianon Series

Q:  I have a hard cover copy of The Song of Hiawatha with a different cover than any you show here. It is beautiful and in excellent condition with gold details and red carnations on the cover. Does that mean it was published later that 1898? The gift message inside is dated 1907. Thank you for your time!

A:  Your book is part of the Petit Trianon Series and was published in 1907. The acorn pattern surrounded one of four different flowers. All of the titles in this series are reprints.

It was originally published within a labeled box. A picture of the box is shown here.

It only has nominal value.

Golden Treasury Series

Q:  I have a book called "Christian Living" written by F.B. Meyer and have attached a picture of cover and a few pages in the book. It has a green cover with flowers on front. There is an inscription on one of the front pages that says "Presented To Henry Bush Christmas 1906". I have been looking for a book like this on the internet for quite a while and have yet to find one. I'm hoping that you can help me with a few questions. It does not have a publish date and I also wonder if you can tell me what the value may be on it. I am interested in selling it but want to make sure I put the right price on it.

A:  Your book is from the Golden Treasury Series and was published in 1899.

Although it has a nice decorated cover and is in good shape, it will be hard to sell for more than a few dollars. There is very little demand for this title.

Of interest is that the cover was published in several different colors. They are shown on the series page.

Non Series

Q:  I have a set of William Shakespeare books published in 1891. It says set of four original binding. I'm just curious about their history. Some of the information provided on your site doesn't seem to match my books.

A:  This four volume set of Shakespeare's Works can be found here: Non Series #127. The set originally came within a box which was sold for $5.00.

This set is not nearly as common as the 31 volume set published between 1899-1930's. See Shakespeare's Plays.

Your set seems to be very similar if not exactly the same as the one shown on the website.

Vademecum Series

Q:  Herewith find photo attached of cover of The Pilgrim's Progress. Binding is intact, all pages are attached to binding. Please kindly advise if you wish to purchase or can recommend how much to ask and where to offer to sell. Thank you.

A:  This book was published in 1904 in the Vademecum Series. This year's books were published in a number of different colors. There were four flower patterns noted.

Since all of the titles in this series are reprints, only certain very collectible titles have any value. Your title is not within this select group and thus will be hard to sell for more than a few dollars.

The flower pictures are shown here.

Vademecum Series

Q:  Hello, I sent you this email a few days ago, before posting this book on eBay, but I think you may not have received it via Outlook, so I'm trying again.

I can’t seem to find this floral binding with its beautifully decorated front and rear boards, and spine, for Bab Ballads anywhere on your outstanding, invaluable Web site. So it's up on eBay now, and I'd appreciate any information you can give me on it.
Thanks so much!

A:  I did not receive your previous email. Sorry.
Your book is part of the Vademecum Series and was published in 1896. A sample book cover is shown on that page.

Your title is a reprint and has nominal value only.

Wyncote Series

Q:  Good evening! Just hoping to get some information on this edition. A Child's Garden of Verses. No date. 137 pages, 4 color plates, many black and white (looks like) block illustrions. There's a lot of screwiness out there on amazon and ebay etc. I just trying to be exacting. Thank you in advance for your time.

A:  Your book is part of the Wyncote Series. It originally has a dust jacket.

This series of reprints was first published in 1927 and reprinted until 1933.

Vademecum Series

Q:  Hi, I recently picked up a beautiful copy of Hawthorne's "Twice Told Tales" published by Altemus, but am unable to find any information on it, can you identify it and give me an approximation of its value? Thank you.

A:  This book is part of the Vademecum Series and was published in 1897. It originally came within a labeled box. It is a reprint and only has nominal value.

The 1897 Vademecum books came in a number of colors. Some are shown here.

Library of Standard Authors

Q:  I have a copy of Paul and Virginia, I was told it published in 1890. There is no date of publication in the book. On page four there is an inscription that it is part of a series including
"Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass
Lucile
Paul and Virginia.”
The following page is the table of illustrations. The cover is below. Do you know publication date?

A:  Your book was published in 1897-1898. It is part of the ten volume Library of Standard Authors' Series. The books in this series have been seen in several different color covers.

Beauxarts Series

Q:  Hello, The name of this book is Coming to Christ. I am enclosing a picture. Please tell me the age and the value of this book.

A:  This book is part of the Beauxarts Series and was published in 1897. This is one of many Altemus publisher's series of reprints.

Each year the cover was changed to enhance sales since the decorative cover was as important as the subject material. This book only has nominal value.

This cover has been seen in a number of colors.