Kevin, it sounds like you may have the makings of a new illustrated MT book
on your hands.

On Nov 13, 2017 9:23 PM, "Kevin Mac Donnell" <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:

> The Mark Twain Scrapbook is nicely written up in a book on scrapbooking
> that
> I reviewed in the Forum a few years ago. As claimed in the advertisements,
> it was a clear improvement over the practice of having to apply your own
> paste. That could get messy. I have over 50 examples--all different cover
> designs and sizes--and this includes some unused ones. The pages do often
> stick together, but this should not comes as a surprise for a book kept
> over
> 100 years in a barn, house, or attic without the benefit of humidity and
> temperature control. I'd get a bit sticky myself, probably within days. But
> I have many more examples whose pages have not stuck together, and the glue
> is remarkably stable. The glue used in some self-adhesive photo albums of
> the 1970s is notoriously unstable and often reacts very badly and destroys
> whatever is stuck in the album. Not so with the Mark Twain Scrapbooks.
>
> The thing was a success and was produced from 1877 to at least 1901 (the
> date of the last catalogue I have listing them).
>
> Kevin
> @
> Mac Donnell Rare Books
> 9307 Glenlake Drive
> Austin TX 78730
> 512-345-4139
> Member: ABAA, ILAB
> *************************
> You may browse our books at:
> www.macdonnellrarebooks.com
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Martin Zehr
> Sent: Saturday, November 11, 2017 12:46 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: Mark Twain Scrapbook
>
> Mark Twain scrapbooks are not in the rare category of Twain collectibles,
> as far as I can determine, and Kevin Mac Donnell can attest. They come in a
> variety of covers and sizes, with the "Mark Twain" trademark prominently
> displayed inside the front cover. They come up on ebay once in awhile and
> I've purchased three over the years, none which were expensive.  They were
> available from the 1870s into the 20th century.  The examples I have were
> used and are interesting artifacts to peruse, the owners inserting news
> items, bad poetry and personal items.  An unused example would undoubtedly
> be more expensive, but undoubtedly less interesting.
> Martin Zehr
>
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> On Sat, Nov 11, 2017 at 3:17 AM, Arianne . <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> > Thank y ou so much.  One of his scrapbooks plays a large part in
> > my interest in Twain.  I've never checked, but I wonder if any blank
> > ones ever come up for sale.  I imagine plenty of used ones might.  I
> > assume the collection of scrapbooks    held by the Mark Twain Project
> > in Berkeley contain examples of scrapbooks the family created before
> > the patent and some they made after.
> >
> > THANKS!
> > Arianne Laidlaw
> >
> > On Fri, Nov 10, 2017 at 11:38 AM, Robert M Ellsworth <[log in to unmask]
> >
> > wrote:
> >
> > > Here is a direct link to the Google Patents page for the
> =91Improvements
> > =
> > > in Scrap-books=92 patent, from which you can download a PDF copy if the
> > > =
> > > online documentation is too hard to read (as it very often is!)
> > >
> > > https://www.google.com/patents/US140245
> > >
> > > The idea is rather interesting: he covers the whole page with =
> > > water-soluble glue or mucilage, and a user moistens just the area where
> > > =
> > > something is to go, presumably most easily with a small brush or blot
> of
> > =
> > > paper.  Contemporary ads appear to show something between the treated =
> > > gummed pages, perhaps material to which the gum left exposed between =
> > > pasted items won=92t self-stick in humid locations.  Presumably there
> is
> > =
> > > some care to provide =91adhesive=92 that will not stick until desired,
> =
> > > perhaps dusting with (dyed) cornstarch or similar material to form what
> > > =
> > > parents with diapered children might know as =91a barrier layer=92.
> > >
> > > The accounts I=92ve read say that he made ample profit from this =
> > > invention, and my guess is that the name recognition was a large part
> of
> > =
> > > the attractiveness.  Perhaps it would still be, if anyone decided to =
> > > =93re-introduce=94 these with modern materials =85 I can think of a few
> > > =
> > > improvements just looking at the patent drawings.=
> > >
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > Arianne Laidlaw A '58
> >
>