Peter Parley's annual
Subtitle: a Christmas and New Year's present for young people.
Contributors: Martin, William, 1801-1867.; Absolon, John, 1815-1895.; Weigall, Charles Harvey, 1794-1877.; Hine, Henry George, 1811-1895.; Keene, Charles, 1823-1891.; Weir, Harrison, 1824-1906.; Mason, W. G. fl. 1842-1857.; Gray, Charles, engraver, d. 1847; Measom, William Frederick, fl. 1840s-1876.; Wall, G. H.; Landells, Ebenezer, 1808-1860.; Delamotte, William Alfred, 1775-1863.; Goodrich, Samuel G. 1793-1860.; Leighton Brothers.; Andrew & Wagner,; Lewis and Son
Publisher: Darton and Co.
Published: 1851
Place of publication: London
Language: eng
Number of pages: 376
Subjects: Gift books -- Specimens.; Children's literature -- Periodicals.; Boys -- Periodicals.
Genres: Specimens.; Periodicals.
Other titles: Peter Parleys annual; Peter Parley's magazine
Notes: Added colour wood-engraved illustrated t.p. plate includes areas printed in colour with metal.

Preliminary colour wood-engraved plate is with imprints: "John Absolon, Del." and "Leighton Brothers".  Plate includes areas printed in colour with metal and is with title caption.

Wood-engraved plates (except plate [4]) are printed with beige background.  Most are signed as engraved by W. G. Mason after C. H. Weigall or H. G. Hine.

Plate [4] is an illustrated wood-engraved t.p. for story entitled "Scenes from English history".  Plate is signed as engraved by Andrew & Wagner.  Plate is included in pagination.

Most wood-engraved illustrations within the text are unsigned.  A few are signed by C. Keene, T. Cunningham, Weir and J. L. Dudley.  A few are signed as engraved by C. Gray, Andrew & Wagner, W. Measom, H. Beavan, G. & C. Wall, G. Wall and E. Landells.  One is with signature: "WAD" [i.e. William Alfred Delamotte] and another is signed [JBne?].

Includes wood-engraved decorative head-pieces, initials and illustrated tail-pieces.

Publisher's advertisements on p. [1-16] at end entitled: "Important Educational and Other Works Published by Darton and Co.".

Part of a series published under various imprints from 1840-1892 that consisted of bound volumes of the monthly numbers of "Peter Parley's Magazine", which began publication in 1839 under the imprint of Darton and Clark.  William Martin edited several numbers of the "Magazine".  In the early years the "Annual" was published with the imprint of its distributors, Simpkin, Marshall and Co.  Cf. Darton, F. J. Harvey.  Children's books in England, 1982.

Believed to be the earliest boy's annual published in Britain.  Cf. McLean, Ruari.  Victorian book design and colour printing, 1972.

The American author S. C. Goodrich claimed exclusive rights to the pseudonym "Peter Parley" and quarreled with its use by both British and American publishers for works of which he denies authorship and for bogus re-workings of his writings under the Parley name.  He also objected to the use of the pseudonym for this Annual, the authorship of which he bears no responsibility.  Cf. Goodrich, S. G. Recollections of a lifetime, 1967.

Faxon, F. W. Literary annuals, p. 108.

St. John, Judith. Osborne collection of early children's books, Vol. 1, p. 406.

Cf. Darton, F. J. Harvey.  Children's books in England, p. 221-228.

McLean, Ruari.  Victorian book design and colour printing, p. 40, 42, 47-48, 58, 62, 192.

Goodrich, S. G. Recollections of a lifetime, v. 2, p. 296.

MASS copy: Bound in red morocco-grain cloth blocked in gold and blind; a.e.g.  Upper cover blocked in gold with illustration similar to those within the text.  With glazed pale yellow endpapers.  Spine re-backed. Lacking half-title.
Table of contents: value: Carpets; value: Chinese junk; value: Discoveries in Assyria and Babylonia; value: Eagles and their habits; value: Eruption of Mount Vesuvius; value: Faithfulness; a story of three blind puppies; value: Fall of a mountain; value: Family lesson; or, A lecture on a soap bubble; value: Forest ramble in the month of June; value: Great Exhibition of 1851; value: Hippopotamus; value: Hodge and Margery; or, Hoeing potatoes, a rural story; value: Last of the giants; value: Little about sun, moon and stars; value: Mumbo jumbo; value: Noble deeds of woman; value: North Pole and voyages of discovery in the northern regions; value: Old witches, wizards, ghosts and hobgoblins; value: Overland route to India; value: Prince Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table; value: Scenes from English history: something about the Saxons and the Saxon times in England; value: Shang-Wang-Kang; or, the noblest action, a Chinese tale of the Hi-Ho Dynasty; value: Something about birds; value: Something about mice, and of Mr. Jesse's singing mouse; value: Something about monkeys; value: Something about moths and butterflies; value: Something about old castles; value: Something about plains and deserts; value: Something about trees; value: Something about the Hindoos, and the lighting of lamps on the banks of the Ganges; value: Something about the Pampas of Patagonia; value: Something about the Silvas; or, Forest Deserts of the Amazon; value: Something about the sloth; value: Something more about birds; value: Something more about trees; value: Poetry. Answers to botanical questions; value: Botanical questions; value: Martin of Martindale, an original ballad of 1745.