Winter 2024

News of the Mercantile Library

Recent Acquisitions: Artwork Worth Investigating

Every object has a story – when and where it was made, for whom, and why, among many other questions. Sometimes we know a great deal about an object, and at other times some sleuthing is necessary. This week a fascinating work of art was generously donated to the Mercantile Library. This small watercolor is a study for a landscape mural in three parts, and although it is unsigned, it is strongly attributed by the donor to Frederick Oakes Sylvester. The design is very much in the manner of Sylvester’s murals, with a landscape that slopes up on one side, the far shoreline of the river visible in the distance, and a multi-stemmed tree anchoring one side of the composition in the way Sylvester used clustered trees. Loose strokes of watercolor, in some places over faint pencil lines, created the landscape elements and the gray lines – in the same color used for the trees – that outline the image and divide it into a triptych. This work reflects an effort to capture a thought, or perhaps a scene experienced first hand by the artist who imagined it as an expansive mural to bring nature and the river to some public place where a wider audience could benefit from its beauty. Sylvester’s mural work has been well documented by scholars over the years, and we will continue to research this intriguing work through these and other sources to better tell this object’s story.  

Attributed to Frederick Oakes Sylvester (1869-1915), landscape mural study, watercolor, 3.5 x 10.5 inches.

Additions to the Fine Art Collection

The director and curator have established collecting goals for the fine art collection, designed to ensure that important artists are well-represented and to enable the Mercantile Library Art Museum to tell the story of Missouri’s art history as completely as possible. Thanks to a very generous anonymous donor, we recently exceeded a significant collecting goal, to acquire a strong example of a George Caleb Bingham portrait by a known sitter, by acquiring a pair of exceptional Bingham portraits. The paintings date from 1835, early in Bingham’s career as a portraitist, and feature Jacob Fortney Wyan and Nancy Shanks Wyan. The Wyans were married in 1817 in Kentucky and moved to Boonville in 1819, the same year that eight-year-old George Caleb Bingham’s family moved to the region. In 1827, Bingham’s father died and he apprenticed to a cabinet maker to earn money. By 1835, however, when Bingham painted these portraits, he had earned a favorable reputation for producing portraits such as these. The Wyans’ portraits are documented in E. Maurice Bloch’s The Paintings of George Caleb Bingham: A Catalogue Raisonné, published in 1986, which features Nancy Shanks Wyan’s portrait as one of the cover images. These works are an exciting addition to the collection and a wonderful complement to Bingham’s portraits of George and Martha Washington that have graced the Mercantile’s halls since its earliest days. 

George Caleb Bingham (1811-1879), Jacob Fortney Wyan and Nancy Shanks Wyan, 1835, oil on canvas. Purchased with funds from an anonymous donor.

Recent Acquisitions - Special Collections

This mid-19th century Maine newspaper reprints on the front page an Indian Captivity, evidence that this important genre of early American literature survived not only in books and manuscripts but in the periodical mass media of the day.  

An unrecorded imprint in any other library, the Mercantile has acquired the Constitution of the Inter-State League of Professional Base-Ball Clubs (St. Louis, 1890). This document formed the foundation of the important “Three I League” in Illinois, Iowa, and Indiana, a minor league powerhouse in the early 20^th century. This represents the nation’s oldest Class B minor league, producing many legendary players.

Lost and Found; or Three Months with the Wild Indians (Dallas, 1888) by Ole Nystel, tells the story of a Norwegian immigrant boy captured in Texas in 1867 by the Comanches, his escape and his memories of native American customs. A very rare captivity now joins the growing collection housed in the Mercantile since the beginnings of the institution as a great treasure of the Americana collection.

Peter and Donna Thomas, famed book artists from Santa Cruz, have created a fitting elegy for their threatened and beloved Bonita Lagoon, which due to a succession of great storms, is now cut off from water and drying up. A place of birds and plants, the paper in this book is made from plant fibers collected over four decades by these superb artists. Goodbye Bonita Lagoon: A Paperman’s Elegy (Santa Cruz, 2023) is a fitting and timely addition to the Book Arts and Fine Press collection at the Mercantile.

The Library received two magnificent lithographs from an 1850 natural history report for the state of New York focusing on a rapidly increasing “Indian Collection” of that time and region housed by the Regents of the University of the State of New York; a copiously illustrated resource. (Albany: 1850)

The Mercantile has acquired a rare and fascinating, nearly century-old manuscript on the history of the establishment of the telephone in this city. Put together by the George F. Durant Chapter of the Telephone Pioneers of America in 1934—people who established early phone lines across the metropolitan area forty years before at the turn of the century—this report offers detailed information on the early investors, visionary business leaders, marketers and events which eventually knitted a vital communications network across St. Louis. Early public demonstrations of the possibilities of the new invention are recounted in ways that make it easy to reflect on subsequent developments in communication as a stepping stone process from radio, wi-fi, and cellular, down to the present day.

St. Louis Post-Dispatch Clippings - Shelved and Ready for Research!

The Mercantile recently accepted a large collection of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch clipping morgue. Images below show the journey of the clipping files as they came to be housed temporarily on level 1 of the Library near the Map & Print Area. The archive will eventually reside in a greatly expanded, climate-controlled newspaper and special collections room at the Mercantile.

The Post Dispatch Clipping Library is shelved and ready for access by library researchers in the Mercantile’s Reading Room. Contact Charles Brown to make an appointment for access to this massive St. Louis historical collection.

2023 All Boards, Docent & Volunteer Recognition Breakfast

Every year in early December, members of all four advisory boards – Mercantile, Barriger, Pott, and Fine Art – gather to recognize and thank the many volunteers whose hard work and dedication contribute to the success of this historic institution. This special occasion is a highlight of the calendar for the boards and staff, who value our volunteers for the unique skills and talents they bring to the Mercantile. 

This year’s event had a very special addition to the agenda when Curator of Reference Charles Brown unveiled John Hoover’s official director’s portrait. Early in 2023, Beau Brauer suggested to John that the Mercantile should have a formal portrait of him to commemorate his many years of dedicated service. Both John and Beau admire the work of Bryan Haynes, and so Bryan was commissioned to create the portrait. The painting is an exceptional likeness of John and an insightful representation of the important collections that he has built for the library over the years, all seen within the very recognizable setting of the executive director’s office. We are grateful for Beau Brauer’s generosity and forethought that brought the project to life, and to Bryan Haynes for his talent, skill, and imagination in creating this remarkable work of art.

Library Renovation Updates

The changes on level 2 of the Mercantile are becoming increasingly noticeable as the renovation kicks into gear. Construction workers have gutted the area that will be transformed into the new art gallery. Even during the library’s brief electrical outage, workers were present and built wooden crates to protect our treasured centuries-old sculptures, such as Hosmer’s Beatrice Cenci and Verhaegen’s Daniel Webster. These crates will keep them safe as construction unfolds. The images below will give you a small preview of this recent activity.

We are eager to see how the renovation progresses, and look forward to sharing more updates with you along the way!

We gratefully acknowledge the following donors and organizations who have made pledges and contributions to the Library Renovation Fund:

• The Bellwether Foundation
• Bernoudy Foundation
• The Bland Family Foundation
• Hunter Engineering
• William T. Kemper Foundation
• Mathews Foundation
• Northern Trust
• The Orthwein Foundation
• St. Louis Trust
• Anonymous Donor
• Anonymous Donor
• Anonymous Donor
• Donald Anderson Jr.
• James Andrews
• John Atherton
• Captain Jim and Annie Blum
• Mary Randolph Ballinger
• Stephen Brauer
• Rollin Bredenberg
• Lyle Brizendine
• Doug Bryant
• Spencer Burke
• Dan Burkhardt
• Joseph Carpenter III
• Robert Chapman
• Christopher Dames

• Paul Denton
• Robert Dick & Mary Ellen Dick
• Missie Dowey
• Ryan Easley
• Bruce & Barbara Feldacker
• Sharon Fenoglio
• Daniel Fort
• Stanley and Terry Freerks
• Bon French
• Lou Fusz
• Mrs. Joseph F. Gleason
• Peter Gleich 
• Thomas Grady
• Deecy Gray
• Christine Hartwig
• Michael Haverty
• A. Charles Hiemenz
• Carlota Hermann-Holton & Richard Holton
• John N. Hoover
• Sumner Hunnewell
• Christy Franchot James
• Nikkole Jones
• Landon Jones, Jr.
• James Krueger
• Harry Langenberg Jr.

• Kenneth & Kathleen Lawler
• Brad Layton
• Gary Lee
• Anne Leners & Dan Cook
• Edmond Lincoln
• Philip Loughlin III
• Jane Mackey
• Philip Mackey
• James Mann
• Marilyn Merritt
• John Mulderig III
• William Piper
• Thomas Reh
• Patricia Rice Hellmuth
• Linda & Bill Schafer
• Jim & Joan Schiele
• Judy Schmitt
• Mark Spasser
• Georgia Stephens
• Pat Tansey
• Fred Thatcher
• Paul E. Vilter
• Jacqueline Vossler
• Keli Wickersham
• Clint Zweifel

Transportation Acquisitions

This winter the Barriger Library acquired a wonderful piece of railroad history compiled by a witness to an event. In this case we acquired a scrapbook from the 1927 Fair of the Iron Horse, the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad’s celebration of the centennial of railroading. It took place outside of Baltimore, Maryland and ran from September 24 to October 8, 1927. The company invited other railroads from around the world to send equipment to exhibit and participate in the parade of progress and many did accept the invitation. 1.3 million visitors attended the pageant over the course of its run with 110,000 visiting the fair in a single day.

The scrapbook was compiled by B&O employee C. Linwood Rollins and contains dozens of photographs taken during the fair and many pieces of paper ephemera from the displays. Rollins was a management employee of the railroad who organized employee wellness activities, an idea that was part of Daniel Willard’s vision for the company during his time as president. Rollins helped coordinate the various employees who participated in the pageant as actors during the parade of transportation, as such we have many photographs of these employees in their costumes with their names making this a helpful tool for researchers and genealogists alike.

Our latest Pott Library Acquisition is a canal letter from 1825 regarding the proposed construction of a new canal in Pennsylvania. This document is from John McKinney, of Butler, Pennsylvania, and addressed to an associate, Putnam Catlin. Mr. Catlin was also the father of the artist, George Catlin.

The letter itself discusses the proposal to build a canal from Utica, New York to Chenango Point on the Susquehanna River. The purpose was to provide a way for Pennsylvania coal to move to Utica and thence to the Great Lakes. His letter strongly supports the project. McKinney was already very active in the iron industry in Western Pennsylvania when he added canal construction projects to his portfolio. He was very familiar with the value of Pennsylvania coal to the iron industry and knew that any expansion of the market would increase the general economic prosperity of the Western part of the state.

The canal project was completed in the 1830s, but only remained relevant for about 20 years as railroads rapidly replaced the canal system in Pennsylvania and the nation overall. McKinney, after a successful career in business, passed away in December of 1898 at the age of 86 in Mercer County, Pennsylvania.

Congratulations to Julie R. Enszer, Recipient of the

2024 Mercantile Library & Bibliographical Society of America Fellowship

Julie R. Enszer, PhD, is the recipient of the 2024 St. Louis Mercantile Library and Bibliographical Society of America Fellowship. Enszer is a scholar, editor, and poet. Her scholarly work has appeared or is forthcoming in Southern Cultures, Journal of Lesbian Studies, American Periodicals, WSQ, Post45, Frontiers, and other journals. Enszer has her MFA and PhD from the University of Maryland. She edits and publishes Sinister Wisdom, a multicultural lesbian literary and art journal, and is a regular book reviewer for The Rumpus and Calyx. She is an Instructional Assistant Professor with the Sarah Isom Center at the University of Mississippi. You can read more of her work at www.JulieREnszer.com.

2024 Fellowship Project:

Feminist Bookstore News (FBN) began publishing in 1976 with the title Feminist Bookstore Newsletter. It emerged from the first women in print conference held outside of Omaha, Nebraska at the request of booksellers who wanted to keep the energy and momentum of the conference going. Initially a mimeographed, staple-bound newsletter, FBN grew to be a preeminent book trade magazine for feminist bookstores as well as affiliated publishers, vendors selling to feminist bookstores, and interested feminist readers. FBN ran from 1976 until 2000 publishing over 130 issues; these issues ranged from eight pages to over 200 pages per issue.

With support from the Mercantile Library Fellowship, Julie R. Enszer and a team will:

• Create a descriptive bibliography of Feminist Bookstore News, the trade magazine of feminist booksellers and the broader Women in Print Movement, for researchers to search the thousands of articles published to focus research interests and explore the wide range of material considered in the magazine.
• Create an enumerative bibliography of every book mentioned in Feminist Bookstore News during its lifespan to provide a dataset of books published during this period of feminist interest.

Building on Kate Ozment’s call for feminist book history that “knits a narrative of book history through librarianship, book collecting, and textual editing alongside the traditional space of bibliography,” this project will build a large bibliographic dataset for analysis and support a broader assessment of the scope and impact of the women in print movement.

Staff Transitions at the Mercantile Library

The Mercantile Library is fortunate to host a unique opportunity for early career librarians, thanks to a generous donor. Four years ago, this friend of the library met and was very impressed by the Mercantile’s transportation curators, and through conversation with them realized the challenges they had faced gaining the experience necessary to get even an entry-level position. The donor worked with John Hoover to determine how best to establish a full-time, benefit-eligible, two-year maximum-term position for a recently graduated librarian. The result is the Scott Family Early Career Special Collections Librarian position, now fully endowed which allows the Mercantile to offer this rare opportunity in perpetuity. The first recipient, Alyssa Persson, started her term in February, 2020, and in 2022 Adrienne Rife became the second person to fill the position. The goal of the position is to provide broad training and experience in many aspects of librarianship that make the librarians better equipped to qualify for their next position. We were very fortunate in both Alyssa and Adrienne to have found such capable, enthusiastic, and personable colleagues. After her term, Alyssa remained for another two years as cataloguer and reference assistant before taking a position in the Boston area, and we have just lost Adrienne to a new position in Oklahoma City. As hard as it is to lose these valued colleagues, we can feel proud that we are fulfilling the mission of this position by helping to launch new librarians into long and successful careers. We will soon begin the search for the next Scott Family Librarian. We also said farewell to Sara Hodge, former curator of the Herman T. Pott National Inland Waterways Library for three years, who recently left for an opportunity in Colorado Springs. Her duties have been placed in the extremely competent hands of Nicholas Fry, Head of Transportation Collections. We wish all of these young professionals the best of luck in their careers and look forward to welcoming new teammates over the next few months.

From L to R: Alyssa Persson, Adrienne Rife, and Sara Hodge.

Board Spotlight: Dr. Ruth L. Bohan

Dr. Ruth L. Bohan arrived at UMSL to teach American art history in 1981 with a specialty that connected nicely with the strengths of the Mercantile Library’s art collection. With the help of Julie Dunn-Morton (a former student!) Ruth regularly sought to expand students’ knowledge of and exposure to the scope and variety of the Mercantile’s substantial collection of nineteenth and twentieth-century American art. Ruth has also, on occasion, been pleased to share her research with Mercantile members and docents. Much of her research has explored the relationship between the poet Walt Whitman and a broad range of artists in both the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. A thrill was seeing Whitman’s signature boldly scrolled across the page of the Mercantile guest book in 1879. This was during the poet’s only journey West and while visiting his brother Jeff, an engineer with the city’s waterworks department. Ruth's affiliation with the Mercantile continues through her service on the Art Museum Board and volunteering. 

Since 2022, Ruth has assisted with art collection processing in several ways. She uses her knowledge of art history and her exceptional research skills to expand the biographical files for artists in the collection, and she has processed prints and drawings for archival storage and entry into the collections database. Ruth was also part of the team that organized and processed the extensive Weatherbird drawings collection. We wish to thank Ruth for the many ways that she helps support the Mercantile Library!

Coming Soon - The Great St. Louis Bridge in Image and Print

“The Great St. Louis Bridge in Image and Print” celebrates the 150^th anniversary of the dedication of the Eads Bridge. This will be a program of the Herman T. Pott National Inland Waterways Collection, the Barriger Railroad Historical Collection, and the St. Louis Mercantile Library Art Museum. This exhibition opens in March in the Meier and Shopmaker Galleries and will be on display through Christmas of 2024.

James Godwin Scott (1913-2015), Eads Bridge, n.d., watercolor.

Mercantile publications available for purchase:

Thank you always for your generous support and loyal membership.