Wild Flowers of New England

Book title: Wild Flowers of New England 1912
Author: Chester A. Reed
Editor: Chas K. Reed
Publication year: 1912
Copyright:July 1st, 1912, Chas. K. Reed, Worcester, Mass.
Format: 5 x 7 inches
Type of cover: Artisanal type cardboard cover
Number of pages: 51 pages, 40 color drawings
Retail price in 1912: ??
Mailing cost: ??

This book accompanied the book “Wild Birds of New England,” published a few months before.

The book cover seems to use the paper marbling technique, which results in a unique cover. The book was bound by staples in the middle, but a decorative string on the side of the cover made it look like an artisanal binding.

It features 40 descriptions of the most common plants in the region.
The book was sold in a decorative box, which added a special touch to the content to encourage buying it as a gift or to keep it as a souvenir of a trip in the region.

At the same time as the publication of “Wild Flowers of New Work,” in July 1912, Charles K. Reed, Chester A. Reed’s father, published “Wild Flowers of New England” using the same content.

It leads us to thinking that the original idea to publish a gift book came from the Mohonk Salesrooms. ⁽¹⁾That could explain why Charles granted the retail rights in the State of New York to the organization, while keeping the right to use the same content in an identical book aiming at another tourist region.

Charles K. Reed was a businessman. If he owned the idea, he would probably not have granted the retail rights to satisfy an organization without gaining a strategic advantage. No documentation mentioned a negotiation between both parties, as was the case with Doubleday, Page & Company.

You can consult the slideshow of the presentation.