Zephyr Used & Rare Books has issued a catalogue titled Brave New World. Whether the world is brave or new is subject to debate, but the items in the catalogue are old. There is a variety of types of material, from books to just about anything on paper, and subjects are too varied to begin to describe, but Zephyr's catalogues are always filled with the exciting and unexpected. What we see is the past through the eyes of its contemporaries rather than historians. Advertising and promotional materials fill many pages, but there is much more too. We will take a look inside.
What must be the best-known World's Fair in America is that of 1939. The optimism displayed in the futuristic displays is juxtaposed with the reality that we were on the brink of the biggest war ever. For one last time, we could put our cares aside. Item 138 is a souvenir brochure titled Views. The New York World's Fair. It was called “The World of Tomorrow,” and displays featured the wonders we would soon experience. There were around 375 buildings, with exhibits from 62 countries and 34 American states. It would be impossible to list everything that was displayed, or to have seen it all if you were there, but this booklet should give you a good summary. Priced at $450.
Christiane Ritter writes about a world that was cold and dark. The book is A Woman in the Polar Night, published in 1954. She followed her husband to Svalbard-Spitsbergen when he traveled there on a scientific expedition, and then stayed to be a fur trapper. Svalbard is a Norwegian group of islands that require a long trip south just to reach the border of the Arctic circle. While ocean currents keep it milder than other places at such a high latitude, it is still by just about everyone else's standards very cold. Winter sees months of darkness, except for an eerie moonlight. Ritter describes the desolation of this land mostly covered with snow and ice. Item 13. $250.
There are a lot of obscure early automobile brands that disappeared years ago. One that must rank high on the list of obscurities is Victor Page Motors. This was actually from the second time Victor Page started an automobile company. He formed the Page Motor Vehicle Company before the First World War which manufactured 25 cars before going out of business. Page went off to war and worked in aeronautics in France before returning home to write a lot of automotive books and then start his second automobile company, Victor Page Motors. His second attempt ran from 1921-1924 with plans to build 300,000 cars a year. That was an ambitious goal, but Page's second automobile company fell short of the 25 cars produced by the first. They made 15. None are believed to survive, but if you find one in an old barn or junkyard, you have something special. Item 36 is a promotional album for Victor Page Aero Type Four automobiles. They featured an air-cooled engine, tilted steering wheel, disc brakes and a 30 HP 4-cylinder engine. It contains 67 leaves and 38 silver gelatin photographs. A typescript promotes the company's stock. They had four models priced $1,250-$1,750. Page exhibited his photos at the 1922 New York auto show. The introduction has been signed by Victor Page himself. This is probably your only chance to obtain his autograph. The remains of the company were tied up in court for a few years and Victor Page went on to become an aeronautical consultant. He died in 1947 without starting up any more car companies. Item 36. $1,900.
This brochure features a lovely young lady lying in the grass while propping herself up with one arm. She looks slyly at the camera. Oh... there it is. In the background. It's the 1958 Lincoln Continental! Zephyr says these were the longest six-passenger vehicles ever produced. They look it. You do not want to parallel park one of these babies. Item 33. $150.
These vehicles are even larger, but parking them is a breeze. Just bring it to a stop. Item 151 is a catalogue for Vulcan Iron Works locomotives. From 1911, it includes over 100 photographic illustrations. The engines were produced in Wilkes-Barre and Vulcan was Pennsylvania's third largest locomotive manufacturer. Vulcan's locomotives were smaller than their competitors, making them ideal for lumber mill and logging operations. They were also popular with foreign countries. At one time, Vulcan had 2,500 employees. The company was best with steam engines, but was not very competitive when it came to diesel engines. It went out of business in 1954. According to the National Park Service, there are still Vulcan locomotives in operation in Maine, Michigan, and a few other places. Item 151. $350.
Edna Brush Perkins grew up in a wealthy family in Cleveland. She spent much of her life advocating for women's rights, as well as causes of Margaret Sanger such as birth control. However, she took some time off to go on an adventure with her friend Charlotte Hannahs Jordan. They bravely ventured into the valley of death, better known as Death Valley. It is a deathly place if you go there in summer, but winters are quite hospitable. They traveled through the desert in an old milk wagon drawn by a horse and a mule. On return, she wrote this book, The White Heat of the Mojave: an Adventure with the Outdoors of the Desert, published in 1922. Item 63. $175.
Zephyr Used & Rare Books may be reached at 360-695-7767 or zephyrbook@gmail.com.