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Antique circa-1880s advertising booklet titled The Village Blacksmith, promoting L. Brown’s sugar-coated Globe Pills.
This 34-page patent-medicine booklet combines a promotional story about a blacksmith’s recovery, health claims, customer testimonials and advertising for Globe Pills. It also incorporates material connected to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s well-known poem The Village Blacksmith.
The colorful illustrated booklet was locally distributed by:
E. Wells
Jackson Co.
Ravenswood, W. Va.
The personalized Ravenswood, West Virginia imprint gives this example additional regional advertising and local-history interest.
Approximate measurements:
• 4.75 inches tall
• 3 inches wide
• 34 pages
No official publication date is printed in the booklet. The reference to 1860 within the story describes an event in the narrative and is not a publication date. Comparable 34-page Globe Pills booklets are known from the 1880s, so this example is being described conservatively as circa 1880s.
The booklet shows substantial but attractive age-related character, including toning, discoloration, staining, creases, small tears, edge wear and softened corners.
A fascinating piece of Victorian patent-medicine, pharmacy, medical-quackery, West Virginia and advertising ephemera.
The black display stand shown in the photographs is not included.
Please examine all photographs carefully, as they are an important part of the description.
Antique condition with overall toning, discoloration, staining, creases, small tears, edge wear and softened corners. The binding and pages show age-related wear. Contains 34 pages. No publication date is printed; the 1860 date appearing within the text is part of the story and is not the publication date. Please review all photographs carefully.
