Henry Altemus Company

Young People's Library

Ebay description:  A CHILD'S GARDEN OF VERSES ROBERT L STEVENSON 1902 1 ED

A CHILD'S GARDEN OF VERSES, By Robert Louis Stevenson, with one hundred and twenty illustrations, Published by Hary Altemus Company, Philadelphia, 1902.

The Reality:  The first American edition was published by Scribner's in 1885. This is a 3rd format Young People's Library book. Published in 1902 or later.

High School Vacation Days

Ebay description:  THE HIGH SCHOOL BOYS' TRAINING HIKE 1913 1ST ED 1ST DJ

THIS IS ... THE HIGH SCHOOL BOYS' TRAINING HIKE THE 4TH IN THE HIGH SCHOOL BOYS VACATION SERIES. THIS BOOK WAS PUBLISHED BY ALTEMUS IN 1913. THIS BOOK LISTS TO ITSELF IN THE BOOK ADS AND ON THE VERY SCARCE DUST JACKET.

The Reality:  This jacket is from the third format and was not published until 1924. Since this is the fourth and final book in the series, naturally the ads only list to itself. A 5th book was never published. I suspect if the seller looked, later series books are listed in the ads.

Wee Folks Peter Rabbit Series

Ebay description:  Peter Rabbit's Christmas 1917 1st Graham, Duff rare

The Reality:  The ads tell the story. The last book listed on the Peter Rabbit list on the back of the jacket - Peter Rabbit, Jack-the-Jumper and the Old Witch Woman was published in 1923. Thus, this book at its earliest was published 6 years after the first edition. More specifically, the first edition cover lettering was red not dark green.

Vademecum Series

Ebay description:  Heroes & Hero Worship, Carlyle, Henry Altemus, precopyright, appears to be a first edition, "Heroes and Hero Worship"; by Thomas Carlyle; Henry Altemus, Philadelphia, publisher; no copyright date, very old, ornate cover, pre-copyright indicates it was probably 1880 or earlier; on the inside cover, in faded pencilit says either "1888" or "1998";

The Reality:  The first American edition was published by Appleton in 1841. This book which is part of the Vademecum Series was published in 1897.

Young People's Library

Ebay description:  THE LITTLE LAME PRINCE 1900 FIRST EDITION SCARCE!!!

You are looking at a first edition copy of, "The Little Lame Prince" printed in 1900 by, "The Henry Altemus Co.". .

The Reality:  What you are not looking at is a first edition. The first American edition was published in 1875 by Harpers. What you are looking at is a reprint published by Henry Altemus Company.

Vademecum Series

Ebay description:  ANTIQUE, VINTAGE BOOK~FIRST EDITION.~1890 COPYRIGHT

VINTAGE FIRST EDITION HARDCOVER BOOK,

ENTITLED "IDLE THOUGHTS OF AN IDLE FELLOW" by Jerome K. Jerome. Copyright 1890 by Henry Altemus

Philadelphia, Henry Altemus Company

The Reality:  This is a 1901 Vademecum Series book. The seller confuses the copyright date with the date of publication. The first edition was published in 1886. The first of many Altemus editions was published in 1890.

Vademecum Series

Ebay description:  THE SCARLET LETTER 2nd Ed 1850 NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE L@@K

Starting bid: US $200.00

Fantastic rare book find of a 1850 second printing of The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

# Printed by the Henry Altemus Company in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1850
# Written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, a fantastic piece of Americana
# A complete 2nd edition copy of the Scarlet Letter in hard cover

The Reality:  Seller is clearly delusional. This is a 1915 Vademecum Series book which under the best of circumstances without a jacket would bring $5-10. Note that the publisher is listed as Henry Altemus Company indicating a post-1900 publication. Altemus published no titles for reading until the 1890s. How this seller determined the erroneous 1850 date is unclear. Perhaps the preface was dated.

Vademecum Series

Ebay description:  Washington Irving, The Sketch Book,hc gld stmp,1848
Henry Altemus Company-Philadelphia

The Sketch Book
by Washington Irving
1783-1859
Henry Altemus Company-Philadelphia 1848 (printed in preface)

The Reality:  This 1905 book was part of the Vademecum Series. The fact that there is a date within the preface is of course not relevant regarding the date of a particular book. This is again a typical dating error that could have been avoided with a modicum of effort. As is frequently the case with Ebay books-Buyer Beware.

Young People's Library

Ebay description:  1896 GULLIVERS TRAVELS 1ST EDITION ALTEMUS w 55 ILLUS

This antique hard cover book is titled Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift D.D. with 55 illustrations Henry Altemus Company Philadelphia, copyright date 1896 (no other date is given so I'm guessing this is a first edition?)

The Reality:  This book is a third format Young People's Library book published after 1901. The earliest Altemus Gulliver was published in 1896. But the first edition Gulliver's Travels was published in England in the 1720s.

Submarine Boys Series

Ebay description:  ... The Submarine Boys Secret Mission, First Edition, with Dust Jacket, from 1920. ... The publisher is Altemus, written by Durham.

The Reality:  This book with the pictorial dust jacket was published at its earliest in 1926 as part of the 3rd format of this series. The 1920 copyrighted book was first seen in the 2nd format of this series. The jacket is white coated with a line drawn picture. See below.