Gleason’s Pictorial Drawing Room Companion
The Special Collections continues to find tidbits in the image collection, including items from the 19th Century periodical, Gleason’s Pictorial Drawing Room Companion. This Boston publication was established 1851 by Frederick Gleason and future Boston Daily Globe editor Maturin Murray Ballou. Inspired by The Illustrated London News, Gleason’s sought to combine local and national journalism with high quality illustrations rather than letting the text stand on its own. Gleason’s regularly featured work by artists such as Winslow Homer and John Andrew, as well as many anonymous and semi-anonymous artists. In a world before cameras, Gleason’s is a fascinating time capsule of what mid 19th century America looked like.
Come to the library to see the examples in our photograph and image collection. Talk to one of our archivists if you have questions about this or any other part of the local history collections.