1901-1903

[Dylan Rhodes]

Ladies and gentlemen,

A topic for discussion for anyone who cares about paper.

I have come into possession of a catalog and barring its absence in TPS I have no reason to question its legitimacy. There was a thread on this catalog about a decade ago from my searching but it never reached a public conclusion. This is NOT a reprint of TPS #26 1903 catalog, which I also possess. The font is different, and verbiage is moved around. It is a standalone item. Inside of that catalog was tucked an ejector's introduction insert, an item where I also have no reason to question its legitimacy. The insert is identical in description to the folder mentioned in item #25 in TPS but it's just a touch slimmer at 9 7/8" wide when opened. Now, we all know that Cornell Publications has long had a repro of what they claim to be a 1902 catalog with a green cover (Anyone know how they come to that conclusion?). Assuming that they copied their original in its true form and it possess a green cover, that would make this catalog different than that. Being that this catalog was furnished with ejectors insert and TPS has that folder listed as 1901, can we postulate the following?:

1. Black Cover w/ ejector insert - 1901 catalog
2. Green cover - 1902 catalog
3. Crimson Cover - 1903 catalog

Or do we think all three versions of this catalog were co-existing and any version may or may not have had the insert in it? This time period is getting blurry....

The black catalog still states "after 35 years" on the opening page, but we have long known Parker Bros to embellish their history here and there.