Posted 14 years ago
tikiray
(91 items)
This is a Botany textbook from 1903, it's my favorite in my collection. The book was 90 cents new. The reason I love this book so much is that the girl that owned it, Minnie Lea Bryan, and her friend Mildred Seal wrote notes in the book back and forth during class. Here are some of the things written in the book:
"Look how Alyce has her lips stuck out"
"What's the strongest day in the week? Sunday, because all the others are week days"
"A little boy who lived in the city was visiting his grandfather in the country. His grandfather went hunting and came back with two squirrels. Bobby went out to see him dress them. When after a while he came running in the house crying 'oh momma, come see, grandpa is taking the squirrels shirts and pants right without them knowing it'."
THIS one is the one that makes me wonder. In the back of the book this is the note:
"I heard I had a summons to court today. Reckon I have? I wish I were to get one, I believe I could tell a few things. But not against those boys. I can tell what I know that will help them. And what I know that won't help them, I'll not tell"
Wonder what that was all about??
Anyway, the notes go on and on. I just love reading it. Just wanted to share.
Wow, that's awesome!
Thanks! I get most of my old books from my university. Every so often they have a book sale. I picked this one up for 50 cents a few semesters ago.
I googled those two girls' names and came up with these:
http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/GLASGOW/2002-11/1037244468
http://records.ancestry.com/MildreFrances_Seal_21_Jun_1907_records.ashx?pid=169919655&gss=seo
It would be interesting to see what that court summons was about!
There is another Mildred Seal from Louisiana that graduated in '56.
wow! cool!! The girls signed the book 1924, so if that were the Mildred in the book she would have been around 17 at the time, which would be right on target for a senior in high school. Thanks! I would definitely love to hear what the summons was about!
Maybe the other Mildred is her daughter or something.
Could very well be! Wonder what those "boys" did to get themselves into trouble with the law? Never know back then, but if they were sending out summons to people it must have been something serious.
Yeah, it seems that way. I think that link said North Carolina? Is there any stamp from the school in it?
It says "Louisiana Edition". Botany changes from state to state, so this book was made specifically for Louisiana. I know the girls went to school in LA because some of the terms they use in their notes are indicative to this area.
I bought a lot of 50 old books. Dating 1835 to 1908 for about 30 bucks. I even found a 1895 advertising book mark in there for Hood' sasperalla (didn't spell it right). I have no idea what to do with them, it was an impulse buy.
Old books are super cool. Keep them and decorate with them! You can't go wrong buying books, especially these days. With technology moving so quickly, we might not have real books for much longer.