irving lew catalog

  The bookplates for children that Wilma Hall Fowler collected may have been found in a catalog like the one below. 

Irving Lew was a lawyer and a dealer of rare books who had arrived in America in 1916 and learned to speak English while attending a Brooklyn public school.
(courtesy of The Jewish Daily Forward, http://forward.com/articles/169402/jack-lews-life-shaped-by-faith-and-service/?p=all#ixzz2pH99buBt, accessed Jan 2, 2014.)

Irving Lew was an avid collector and published catalogs featuring bookplates, typography, and book-binding, among other subjects. (see LEFT) He sold books on a mail-order basis.

Much like Alfred Fowler, Lew sought out "want lists" from his subscribers, to keep himself relevant in their eyes (see page 4, ABOVE). Always on the lookout for the next great thing. In this case, bookplates. What follows BELOW were the books he offered in his 1953 catalog. You will notice number of publications listed were by Alfred Fowler of Kansas City. This is to give you a taste for the public demand.    

Double click on images to enlarge. Page 5, LEFT.

Pages 6 and 7, LEFT.

Pages 8 and 9, RIGHT.

Pages 10 and 11, RIGHT.

Pages 12 and 13, LEFT.

Pages 14 and 15, LEFT.








Read more on Lew's publishing business, CLICK on http://books.google.com/books?id=x-6PBX7crnQC&pg=PA125&lpg=PA125&dq=irving+lew,+new+york,+rare+books&source=bl&ots=ygnOdfH-bm&sig=dVUz3tSOzdFNsXgAIz97rNl8tOE&hl=en&sa=X&ei=9M7FUsSBOOblyQHl1oDYCw&ved=0CGUQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=irving%20lew%2C%20new%20york%2C%20rare%20books&f=false, scroll down pages 125 and 126.
 

Cover of mail order 
catalog, RIGHT.

(images from Irving Lew Catalog, courtesy of Robert M. Snyder Jr. Collection, LaBudde Special Collections, UMKC Miller Nichols Library, 5100 Rockhill Road, Kansas City, M0, accessed Aug 8, 2013.)