The Oldest Golf Club Lands the Greatest Golf Book Collection January 22, 2020 – Posted in: Bookselling / Collecting, Content, Private Libraries

Clubhouse at St. Andrews Founded in 1754 the R & A is the oldest golf club in the world. It plays host to the British Open every summer and is the top golf destination in the world. Now thanks to Scotland native Alastair Johnston it will be home to the greatest collection of golf books. Alastair Johnston and his golf books Currently the library stands at 28,000 books with hundreds of new additions planned to…

The original painting of one of the most iconic book images, “The Bookworm,” might be sold April 22, 2014 – Posted in: Art, books, Books and Art, Libraries, Private Libraries

It came to the Milwaukee Public Library in 1972 from the collection of René Von Schleinitz. It was the only item from his “significant collection of German steins, figurines and genre paintings” to go the library. The rest was donated to the Milwaukee Art Museum, including other images of his featuring readers and scholars. Now the library is seriously considering an offer of $400,000 from an undisclosed party for the painting. It is called Der Bucherworm “The Bookworm”…

Regency Furniture for the Book Lover November 13, 2013 – Posted in: books in design, Private Libraries

Ackermann’s Repository was a popular periodical, published in England from 1809-1828. It’s full moniker was “The Repository of Arts, Literature, Commerce, Manufactures, Fashion, and Politics.” It was published by R. Ackermann and became known simply as Ackermann’s Repository. It was published monthly and each issue included a slew of colored plates. In the first series which ran from 1809 – 1815 there was an abundance of furniture illustrations, many featuring pieces for the home library. Enjoy!…

Living with and sharing 35,000 books June 13, 2013 – Posted in: Bookselling / Collecting, Private Libraries, Special Collections

The Johnson family has been collecting and accumulating books since the late 19th century. In 1899 the first family library was built by Thomas Moore Johnson (1851-1919) to house his 8,000 books. It is little wonder that with a library of that size he was known as the “sage of the Osage” (the house and library were built on the Osage River). Now there are two family libraries and 35,000 books. The three generations of Johnsons…