Miss Fanny Williams's (Stonington, CT) 1834 School Register With Beautiful Tally Marks and Poetic Insertions

Regular price $45.00

Just a handful of pages here, but I find this quite special. I first grabbed it for the two page spread shown in the first photo--the most beautiful and precise set of tally marks I think I've ever seen, tracking the attendance of a group of young male students in the class of Miss Fanny Williams at the District 13 school in Stonington, CT, 1834. But then, digging in, I discovered a few other moments here that bring Miss Fanny very much to life: interspersed among her attendance related notes are a few seemingly independent phrases, reading like secret thoughts to herself, which is what I take them for: "is there no hand to cheer the heart[?]" and "life is uncertain." Makes me want to rescue Fanny from the schoolhouse! Also, a two page spread describing spices: nutmeg, cloves, ginger, etc. And what appears to be the draft of a letter to a Mrs. Brown relative to the "use" (or rather lack thereof) of someone named Thomas, which this Mrs. Brown seems to have taken issue with Miss Williams over. A bit mysterious.

 7 7/8" x 6 1/4". 8pp (one partial), plus blue paper covers, all shown. Good condition with tear to the corner of one page as shown.