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COLLECTING L.M. MONTGOMERY
At almost every meeting of our Literary Society, someone brings a wonderful treasure related to L.M. Montgomery. We
share beautiful books by Montgomery, poetry collections, brochures, postcards, old movie theater glass slides, magazines,
movie posters, sheet music, and “discoveries.” Among our members, we must have almost a thousand early copies
of Montgomery books as well as magazine stories, poetry collections and related favorite literature from her own era. The
collectors of the L.M. Montgomery Society could probably help provide some helpful information for a Montgomery bibliography!
We
have been particularly lucky to be the guests of Christy Woster, who has assembled an amazing private collection of Montgomery
material. Her father built several bookshelves for her Montgomery collection and she needs a few more! Christy is a retired
nurse and began collecting many years ago. She is an expert historical researcher and enjoys detailed genealogy work on her
own family and Canadian connections. We are grateful for her generosity and that
of all our members in sharing their enthusiasm, expertise, and delight in Montgomery’s words and “artifacts.”
Here are a few contributions from our members that describe the “collectibles” that keep them connected to the
tangible world of L.M. Montgomery.
Joan O’Brien
I was originally introduced to the Anne series by my mother who read it to me while I was "resting" during the hot,
dry summer days of the 1930s. I didn't even know there were Emily and other books until I joined the LMMLS!
In August 2006, I was looking through an old account ledger of my mother’s
and found that she had devoted a page to listing all the characters, villages and special places, like Birch Path, in Anne
of Green Gables.
I also found this letter to her from The L.C. Page Company (January
1941)! She had requested an autographed Silver Anniversary Edition of Anne of Green Gables and the secretary provided her with Montgomery’s home
address in Toronto so she could send her own request directly to the author.
Ann Johnson
When I was 11 or 12 years old my father and other men on the township board
decided they would clean out their old one room schoolhouse, to use it as a place to vote. The door had been locked
one spring day in the 1920s and everything had been left in the building. My father brought home a box of books that
they found because my sisters and I were readers. As soon as I saw Anne of Green Gables I started reading the
book. The box also contained a copy of Anne of Avonlea. Anne of Green Gables is dated 38th impression,
May 1914, and Anne of Avonlea is dated 26th impression, March 1917. Both books were well-used school library
books and my Avonlea book later had the spine chewed by a puppy.
I loved both of the books and
was excited to see more of the series for sale in the Sears, Roebuck catalog. I remember the day the mailman delivered
the package and I couldn't start reading immediately because I had to go into town for piano lessons. The six books I received
were Anne of the Island, Anne of Windy Poplars, Anne's House of Dreams, Anne of Ingleside, Chronicles
of Avonlea and Further Chronicles of Avonlea. The dust covers show Anne in clothing of the 1950's. I
wrote “November 1955” in the books as the date when I received them.
As I read the books I
knew that someday I would visit Prince Edward Island. It took almost thirty years until my first trip but I have
since been there many times. On my trips I have collected over fifty books by and about LMM.
Mary Beth Cavert
My own interest in collecting early Montgomery editions started
much later than most of the serious collectors I know. In the mid-1980s, I was visiting my parents and found an old A.L. Burt
copy of Anne’s House of Dreams inscribed to my grandmother, about the time she was married in 1920. This beautiful
book inspired me to begin looking for other early editions, because I love to hold the old books in my hands when I read them
~~ the look, the weight and texture of original editions enhances the reading for me!
I have only about 150 early and first edition Montgomery
books of all her fiction and many beautiful later editions. The only unique book I have is probably the “Emily in a
Box.” It is a like-new 1st edition presentation copy of Emily’s Quest in a beautiful box with
the paste down cover.
As a child, and up to
adolescence, I attended a summer camp and an icon of our summer night vesper services was a bronze statue of the Good Fairy,
a popular 1916 scuplture that was produced by Jessie McCutcheon Raleigh (it was made to "smile back into the sad hearts
of the old world" --- Helen Keller was one of its fans). I was surprised and delighted to see a photo of the same Good
Fairy statue in Montgomery’s home in Leaskdale, a keepsake remembrance from her dearest friend, Frede Campbell. I began
to collect these joyful statues from the era of the First World War and I enjoy working at my desk with lamps, bookends and
statues in her likeness.
Carolyn Collins
Like many of our members, I
have been collecting LMM-related materials for years. I enjoy finding first editions (especially with dust-jackets)
of any of her books as well as periodicals that have her short stories and poems. I have found quite a few previously
undocumented and unread stories and enjoy making note of those others have found. Perhaps a bibliography will come of
this someday! Some of my favorites "finds" include a Page Anne of Green Gables with photographs from the
1919 Mary Miles Minter silent Anne film; early Australian editions of all the books; and Harrap "orange cover" editions, along
with a few rarities such as The Watchman, Courageous Women, Verse and Reverse, Up Came the
Moon (with intro by LMM), the Page brochure Something About L.M. Montgomery, etc.
I was very fortunate to buy LMM's
own copy of Foxe's Book of Martyrs, signed by her. I found a watercolour of Lover's Lane that she had inscribed
and given to one of the Webb girls in Cavendish.
Living on PEI in the summer gives me some great opportunities to find a few
"gems" from time to time. When the Webb home in Cavendish had an auction sale a few years ago, I not only got the watercolour,
but a painted pine table that they told me had once been in the kitchen at Green Gables, along with a pair of chairs that
belonged to legendary Island minister Geddie -- LMM had a pair of these, also, and left them to her son Chester in her will.
You can imagine how much I treasure these items that I now have in my cottage on "The Hill of the Mist."
Beth Cavert got me started collecting
the "Good Fairy" statues that LMM had as a souvenir from Frede Campbell (see The Shining Scroll issue for 2003 or Kindred
Spirits magazine, winter 2002). And, of course, "Gog and Magog" are among my favourites. About ten years ago, I worked
with Robert Montgomery of the LMM Heritage Museum to have the miniature versions of the original china dogs there made
up for the gift shop. Visitors to the Museum love to take home their own Gog and Magog to put with their Anne collections!
One thing I would really love
to find is a copy of the little booklet of self-published poems LMM gave for Christmas gifts in Cavendish one year for friends.
Miracles do happen!
I also love to collect primitives
and unusual items for the cottage that make me feel closer to the Island and its remarkable history.
Sarah Reidel
My interest with the world of Montgomery was sparked by the Kevin
Sullivan films. Soon after, I acquired my first copy of Anne of Green Gables, a present from my Mom.
I had always been fond of antiques and history, so after being captivated by the charm of Maud's books, I set out
to find an early edition of any LMM book for myself. My first acquisition was on the way home from a friend's
wedding. I stopped in an antique store and there before me was an early edition of Anne of Avonlea. From
there on I was hooked. As I continued to read anything I could find on the life of LMM, I discovered that there was
a lot of information and memorabilia still waiting to be uncovered. The search for books led to an interest in all things
to do with Anne, LMM and her writings, and PEI itself.
Most of my treasures come from eBay or antique stores. I have also
had many friends help me add to my collection. There is a great thrill in finding another piece of Montgomery material
and sharing the treasure and information with other devotees. I have learned so much from generous Kindred Spirits willing
to share their knowledge and collections.
My collection has expanded from the first edition copies of books to
collecting books from different eras. Some of the covers are beautifully done, and it is fun to see how the heroines
are depicted over time. Some of my favorite things to collect are the magazines that contain many of Montgomery's poems
and short stories. One can page through these wonderful records of yesterday and imagine the ladies of that time enjoying
the latest fiction. I like to imagine Maud herself looking at the way they illustrated her stories and poems.
Another favorite passion of my collecting has become the items related
to the various movies made depicting Maud's books. I think this has drawn my interest because if it weren't for a movie
version I may never have discovered Montgomery. In the case of the 1919 silent film, bits of memorabilia are the only
link we have. The things I have acquired from that film I consider to be some of the most rare items in my collection.
When it comes to collecting Montgomery, I enjoy finding her in unexpected
places, where you can see her influence in the world at that time, like in the People's Home Journal premium list.
This is one of the favorite things in my collection. I consider most paper items to be in the somewhat rare category.
For instance, the Anne's House of Dreams postcard and the Stokes book list were usually discarded after being used,
so having them survive all these years is remarkable.
Thankfully there have
been generations of collectors who thought something was interesting or too pretty to throw away. We may now add these
items to our collections and preserve them for future generations of LMM researchers and devotees.
Christy Woster
For me, collecting Lucy Maud Montgomery began as a necessity
and progressed into a passion. When I was nine years old, my Grandma Cora came to visit and she wanted me to read Anne
of Green Gables, insisting that I check it out from my school library. She had been a teacher for many years, had
often read LMM’s books out loud to her students, and felt that is was time for me to read them too. Grandma Cora
had always been a very avid reader, so she had loaned out all of her LMM books -- most had not been returned.
I brought
Anne of Green Gables home from the library, but had no interest in reading it. Grandma Cora had other ideas.
She sat me down and read the first few chapters out loud. I, of course, wanted to know if Anne was to stay at Green Gables,
but she said I would have to finish the book myself. And so began a love of all things L.M. Montgomery which has lasted
for more than forty years.
At that time, my school library had only a copy of Anne of Green Gables and Anne
of Avonlea. The rest of LMM’s books were out of print and not available to purchase. My family always
went on a summer vacation and we usually went to Canada, so my mother and I began to search old bookstores for any copy of
LMM that we could find. As each summer went by, we would pick up a few more titles. I remember paying 25 cents all the
way to two dollars for some of the titles!
We
were unable to find any copy of Rilla of Ingleside but Grandma Cora came to the rescue. She was in California
visiting my aunt and found a copy of the book at their local library. She checked it out, mailed it to us and we read
it quickly, so Grandma could return it before the due date.
Our family vacation was to Prince Edward Island in 1970,
1971 and 1972, -- a dream come true for me, to see the Land of Anne for myself.
We found some paperback copies from the Canadian Favorite editions at a drug store in downtown Charlottetown and my mother
corresponded with the owner for several years. He would mail us copies of titles
that we did not have when they were reprinted in Canada
Collecting out of necessity led to collecting to improve my
collection. After my two daughters were born (Emily and Anne -- one guess who they are named after), I decided that they should
each have a set of old copies of LMM. There is something so wonderful in reading an old hardcover that has a beautiful
picture cover versus reading a new paperback. So, I searched old bookstores, book fairs and wrote to booksellers all
over the U.S. and Canada. This was before the internet and you really had to search to find the books you wanted.
The
internet has changed antiquarian book buying dramatically and eBay has opened up the whole world to collectors. Now
you can find books, magazines and other related LMM collectibles without ever leaving home, and buy from places that you would
never have been able to visit before.
In the beginning of my search, the condition of the book, the publisher
or the lack of a dust jacket did not matter -- any copy of a title that I did not have was a treasure. Over the years
I have learned the importance of a real 1st edition, dust jackets and pristine condition. One very special bookseller,
who I corresponded with for years, impressed upon me the importance of “condition.” He always said it was better
to spend a little extra to get a fine copy, than to buy several fair-condition books.
To date, I have 460 old copies
of LMM titles. I have close to 50 copies of Anne of Green Gables alone! I have been fortunate to find five
copies published in 1908, two 3rd printings, a 6th, a 7th printing, and my most prized, a 1st edition from April, 1908.
As my collection of books grew, I decided to branch out into old magazines and other items. I have 107 old magazines
that have LMM stories in them.
As my collecting lead me to
look for anything LMM related, I have come across some very interesting items. I was fortunate to get a book that had
been in Maud’s own collection -- it is a book about the Brontės and has Maud’s signature in the front with a drawing of a cat. She mentions reading this book in her journal,
and it just gives me goose bumps to a hold a book that she once held, read and enjoyed.
True collectors are always
searching and learning. Maud wrote the poem “The Wreck of the Marco Polo,” so collecting books and items
related to this ship became a necessity.
Some scholars feel that Maud’s Barney
Snaith character in The Blue Castle is based on Maud’s enjoyment of Charles G. D. Roberts writings, so I have
collected many of his wonderful books. It has also been suggested that Maud may have chosen the name Valancy for her heroine
in The Blue Castle after reading some of the Canadian poet/author Isabella Valancy Crawford. This prompted
me to learn more about this very interesting lady and get some of her books and poems.
In Jane of Lantern Hill,
Bernard Freeman Trotter is mentioned, a soldier poet in World War I who was killed in the war. I found a wonderful copy of
his book of poems that his family had published after his death.
The various movies that have been made based on Montgomery’s works also have opened up areas
of collecting. Mary Miles Minter starred in the silent version of Anne of Green Gables, and, although the film
has been lost, some movie stills (pictures) can still be found, along with sheet music that was used to accompany the silent
film. Interest in Mary Miles Minter leads one to find books about her life, early Hollywood, and an unsolved murder that ended her career. In 1936 another version of Anne of Green Gables was
filmed with the movie star Dawn O’Day playing Anne. She loved the character so much that she changed her name
to Anne Shirley and credits the film with advancing her career. I have collected movie stills, lobby cards, lobby posters
and magazine articles about the actress and the film, along with the same items from Anne of Windy Poplars that the
actress Anne Shirley starred in a few years after making Anne of Green Gables.
I have been back to Prince Edward Island five more times since
my family trips in the 1970's. I wanted my daughters to get to experience the beauty of PEI first hand, and they have
fallen in love with it, too. On one trip, I was buying old post cards of PEI (and the other Maritime Provinces) and
didn’t realize until I got home that one of them had been written by Maud herself. I recognized Maud’s writing
when I read the back of the card. She had sent the card to Edith Russell -- they had worked together at The Echo
newspaper in Halifax. Maud mentions Edith in her journals, and Edith even visited Maud once. What a find!
And to think that I didn’t even know I had such a treasure until months after returning home.
As I was indexing
my collection so I could contribute to our Literary Society Newsletter, I realized how many Montgomery items I have.
I had never before inventoried my collection and it was fun to go through it all, looking at some of the wonderful items that
I have collected. When I totaled all the LMM books and related items up, I found that I have over 1,000 items. And to
think that it all started with a few 25-cent tattered copies of the Anne books.
The love of Lucy Maud Montgomery leads
one down many, many paths. It introduces you to other authors and poets, to history long-forgotten, and to other collectors
of LMM, who I have found to be true Kindred Spirits. What better legacy can one leave to their children than that?
see more articles on the Shining Scroll Online
page.
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