Unrecorded Address from the Watchmen of Philadelphia

[Carrier's Address]: [Christmas Greeting]:

The City Watchman's Address, On the Return of Christmas Day, 1850 [caption title].

[N.p., likely Philadelphia: late 1850]. Broadside, 17.5 x 10.5 inches, text printed in two columns with calendar at bottom, bordered by ornamental designs and woodcuts, with central engraved scene at top. Extensive trimming with minor impact to outer elements, old folds and wrinkling. Good condition only. Item #13228

An elaborately produced Christmas greeting from the night watchmen of an unidentified American city in the middle of the 19th century. The central vignette at top features a watchman making his rounds on a snowy city street, walking between address numbers 24 and 26, thereby signaling Christmas day. The poem is comprised of fourteen four-line stanzas focused on the trappings of Christmas, printed above a "Watchman's Calendar for 1851." Printed below the calendar are "Regulations of the State House bell in case of fire." The elaborate ornaments surrounding the contents are mostly floral designs, with pieces along the bottom featuring a dog, American eagles, and two zebras. OCLC records just two copies of the watchman's address from the previous year, at AAS and Harvard, but no examples of the present year.

Price: $550