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These embossed letter specimens are examples of Boston Line Type.  Boston Line Type was developed in 1835 by Samuel Gridley Howe as a raised letter system of printing for the blind. Reading it tactilely, however, was difficult and the embossed alphabet was eventually abandoned for a simpler dot system. 

 commontouch.librarycompany.org

[Collection of samples of raised-letter line types for printing for the blind]

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This trade card is one of twenty-five in a series issued by W. Duke Sons & Co., gotta catch em’ all!

Donaldson Brothers (Firm), printer. Rolling cigarette. [graphic]. New York : Donaldson Brothers [ca. 1890] 1 print : chromolithograph ; 10 x 6 cm. (4 x 2.5 in.)

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Album of Richard DeReef Venning (1865–1922). Stevens-Cogdell/Sanders-Venning Collection.

This photo album contains portraits of a prominent Philadelphia family, the Stevens-Cogdell/Sanders-Vennings, and other unidentified people. The family, which descended from Richard Cogdell (1787-1866) and the enslaved Sarah Martha Sanders (1815-1850), was actively involved in political, social, and cultural matters in the Philadelphian Black community.

Follow the title link to see the entire album.

From Negro Pasts to Afro-Futures : Black Creative Re-Imaginings is on display now through October 18, 2019.

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We wish we could levitate like Lu Lu, especially when we are trying to reach a book on the top shelf. For now, the traditional step stool will have to do. 

Hopcraft & Co., printer. [Lu Lu, the man bird] New York : Hopcraft & Co., [ca. 1880].  1 print : chromolithograph ; 8 x 13.5 cm. (3 x 5.25 in.)

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Learn the hand signing alphabet with this graphic printed in Philadelphia (ca. 1850). 

David G. Seixas Philadelphia [graphic] : The Deaf & Dumb Language [Alphabet in hand signing]. Philadelphia, ca. 1850. 1 print :  wood engravings ;  9 x 21 cm. (3.5 x 8.25 in.)

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It is finally Spring, and with that we are hearing nature waking up from its wintry slumber. This uncut sheet of chromolithographs showing pastoral and natural scenes illustrates some of the joys of being outdoors when weather starts to warm, including lots of baby animals!

[Uncut sheet of four chromolithographs of children and animal scenes. [Philadelphia? ; ca. 1880] 4 prints (1 sheet): chromolithograph; overall 34 x 24 cm.(13.5 x 9.5 in.)

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This album belonging to Mary Anne Dickerson, a young middle-class African American Philadelphian, was probably created as a pedagogical instrument to promote cultivated expression, with contributions dating from 1833 until 1882 including this delicate floral watercolor painted by Sarah Mapps Douglass. Douglass, an artist and prominent Quaker member of the Philadelphia African American elite community, was best known as an educator and anti-slavery activist. 

Douglass, S. M. (Sarah Mapps), 1806-1882 artist. Forget me not. S.M.D. ca. 1843. Physical Description1 drawing: pen and ink, watercolor; overall 28 x 23 cm. (11 x 9 in.)

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Drs. Starkey & Palen's Compound Oxygen claims to aid any number of ailments from headaches to tuberculosis, just inhaling this cure will increase blood flow to where it needs to go. Or, maybe just breathe some fresh air. The seaworthy man in this picture may be doing both, or maybe he’s about to dump the bottle’s contents into the sea. 

[Drs. Starkey & Palen's Compound Oxygen, 1529 Arch Street, Philadelphia] [graphic]. [Philadelphia?] [ca. 1887] 1 print : chromolithograph ; 11 x 15 cm. (4.25 x 6 in.)