Sunbonnet Questers
The Oct. 13 meeting of Sunbonnet Questers was at the home of Jan Turk. Roll call was answered by eight members with memories of favorite games, toys and dolls. One of these games was Wa Hoo made in Newton by the Mathews and Mat-Co Companies.
Minutes of the September meeting were read and approved.
Correspondence was shared by Dorothy: October Tidbits included information about the Fall Fling in Dennison and the December tea at Terrace Hill. Dorothy will get back to members with more information about the tea.
Old Business: The policies of the chapter must be updated. There will need to be a copy of the by-laws to compare and make sure they are in agreement. Dorothy will have the forms and by-laws at the next meeting. LaVon showed us a copy of the “Iowa History” magazine that has an article on Appanoose County since the group just visited there. Dorothy suggested a program devoted to articles from the magazine.
There being no new business, the meeting was adjourned at 8:30 p.m.
The program “Little Books” was presented by Jan Turk. These books are from the Victorian era and feature lovely illustrations of children and animals in muted colors. It was these illustrations that drew Jan to the books when she began collecting. She said there was very little information available as she began her research for the program.
The original publisher was Ernest Nister of Damerstadt, Germany with the printing done in Nuremburg from 1877-1916. Nister supervised the work which was also produced in London but printed in Germany and by E. P. Dutton in New York. Although Nister stopped production in 1916, there was a resurgence in the 20th century with reproductions, some of which are now also collectibles. There is renewed interest in pop-up books and some are very elaborate. Nister’s books were embossed, panoramic and movable books. The embossed figures were die-cut then mounted within a three dimensional framework then connected to the opposing page, so when the page is opened the figures rise from the page. The dissolving picture works like a venetian blind and a new scene appears as each of the sections is pulled by a tab. The revolving book has a circular picture which changes to a new image as a tab is moved right and left. Following Nister’s death the business declined with the ban on German exports during World War I.
Other publishers of little books included Rafael Tuck & Sons of London which began in 1866, as a greeting card and picture business. The building and originals of their work were destroyed during the blitz in World War II and never recovered. His little books were not as elaborate as those of Nister but were a competitor for Nister in America.
Edith Nesbit (1858-1924) authored books for both Nister and Tuck. She is best known for her book “The Railway Children.” The illustrators were rarely given credit in these original books.