Collection inventory

Overview of the Collection
Creator:	Smyser, George H.
Title:	Lincoln Pamphlets Collection
Inclusive Dates:	1851-1977
Bulk Dates:	1900-1949
Quantity:	13.5 linear ft.
Abstract:	Printed and published items (mostly in the form of pamphlets or small booklets) pertaining to Abraham Lincoln, accumulated by George H. Smyser, along with a small amount of correspondence and items by Lincoln
Language:	Majority of the collection is in English, but there are also items in Arabic, Chinese, Dutch, French, German, Hebrew, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Slovak, Swedish, Turkish, and Yiddish.
Repository:	Special Collections Research Center, Syracuse University Libraries 222 Waverly Ave., Suite 600 Syracuse, NY 13244-2010 https://library.syracuse.edu/special-collections-research-center/university-archives

Biographical History

Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) was the 16th president of the United States. He led the country during the American Civil War and played a major role in the abolition of slavery in America.

George H. Smyser of Utica, New York was an Abraham Lincoln researcher, collector and scholar.

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Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Lincoln Pamphlet Collection consists almost entirely of printed and published items related in some manner to Abraham Lincoln

About the collection contains a small amount of correspondence between George H. Smyser and various dealers about materials Smyser wished to find or purchase for his collection.

Works by Lincoln contains letters, sayings, and other items written by Lincoln himself.

About Lincoln constitutes the bulk of the collection; most is in English but more than fifteen other languages are represented, including Arabic, Hungarian, and Polish. This series is subdivided by type of material as follows: addresses and speeches given by various individuals; advertisements featuring Lincoln or his likeness; articles; bibliographies and catalogs; biographies, for adult audiences; book reviews of books about Lincoln; children's books; Congressional records containing items pertaining to Lincoln or his legacy; educational materials, including textbooks and posters for classrooms; exhibition programs and publicity; interviews with and lectures by various individuals about Lincoln; monument and memorial guides, maps, and brochures; organizational material from bodies related to Lincoln; plays and poetry; programs from assorted events; sermons; souvenirs; and miscellaneous books and clippings.

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Arrangement of the Collection

Correspondence about the collection, addresses and speeches, advertising, book reviews, congressional records, exhibitions, interviews, lectures, poetry, programs, sermons, souvenirs, and miscellaneous clippings are all arranged by date. Articles, bibliographies and catalogs, biographies, children's books, educational material, monuments and memorials, organizations, plays, and miscellaneous books are arranged alphabetically by author, title, firm, or organization.

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

The majority of our archival and manuscript collections are housed offsite and require advance notice for retrieval. Researchers are encouraged to contact us in advance concerning the collection material they wish to access for their research.

Use Restrictions

Written permission must be obtained from SCRC and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

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Related Material

See also the Abraham Lincoln Collection.

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Subject Headings

Persons

Corporate Bodies

Subjects

Places

Genres and Forms

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Lincoln Pamphlet Collection,
Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries

Acquisition Information

Uncertain, but likely purchased in 1970, at the same time as the Abraham Lincoln Collection.

Finding Aid Information

Created by: Mark Svereika
Date: 26 Aug 2025
Revision history:

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Inventory

	About the collection
Box 1		Letters to Smyser regarding Lincoln materials 1924-1935, undated

	By Lincoln
Box 1		Autobiography
Box 1		Gettysburg Address
Box 1		Lecture - "Dicoveries and Inventioons" 1860
Box 1		Letters
Box 1		Sayings
Box 1		Speeches and addresses (6 folders)

	About Lincoln
		Addresses and speeches - includes radio interviews; arranged chronologically.
Box 1			Miscellaneous 1852, 1856, 1861, 1864-1865
Box 2			Miscellaneous 1865-1909 (9 folders)
Box 3			Miscellaneous 1909-1923 (9 folders)
Box 4			Miscellaneous 1924-1931 (12 folders)
Box 5			Miscellaneous 1932-1945, undated (4 folders)
		Advertising - advertisements using Lincoln or his likeness to sell items; arranged by date
Box 5			Miscellaneous 1892, 1909-1911, 1920, 1923-1927, 1931-1937, 1940-1942, 1945-1946, 1950, undated (5 folders)
		Articles - includes clippings, reprints, whole issues, and small booklets; alphabetical by title
Box 6			A. - Ar 1892-1953, undated (11 folders)
Box 7			As - I 1902-1962, undated (12 folders)
Box 8			J - Lincoln m [1860s]-1962, undated (11 folders)
Box 9			Lincoln -- Lincoln's b 1911-1950, undated (9 folders)
Box 10			Lincoln's c - R 1894-1983, undated (12 folders)
Box 11			R-Z, miscellaneous 1897-1952, undated (9 folders)
Box 12			Miscellaneous undated
		Bibliographies and catalogs - catalogs of Lincoln material in libraries and institutions, also auction catalogs listing Lincoln items and publisher catalogs selling books pertaining to Lincoln; arranged alphabetically by name of issuing body
Box 12			Abraham Lincoln Book Shop 1946, undated - catalogs
Box 12			American Numismatic Association 1924 - Lincoln issue of The Numismatist
Box 12			Anderson Galleries 1914-1915, 1927 - auction catalogs (6 folders)
Box 12			Argosy Bookstore 1947-1948 - Lincoln lists
Box 12			Bradley University 1951 - Lincoln topics
Box 12			Brown University 1927, 1942 - McLellan Lincoln Collection
Box 12			Forest H. Sweet 1946, 1949, undated - Directory of Lincoln collectors, booklist
Box 13			Illinois State Historical Library 1938, 1940 - miscellaneous
Box 13			Lincoln Memorial University 1939 - catalog of Department of Lincolniana
Box 13			Lincoln National Life Foundation 1942 - bibliography
Box 13			Parke-Bernet Galleries 1940, 1947-1949, 1952 - auction catalogs (5 folders)
Box 13			Samuel T. Freeman & Co. 1936 - auction catalog
Box 13			State of Illinois 1933 - Catalog of New Salem collection of pioneer relics
Box 13			Theodore S. Charrney [1948] - auction lists
Box 13			Thomas F. Madigan undated - auction catalog (2 folders)
Box 14			Miscellaneous 1909-1960, undated (4 folders)
		Biographies - arranged alphabetically by author's last name
Box 14			Bacon, G. W. / Abraham Lincoln geschetst in zijn leven en daden 1865 - in Dutch
Box 14			Barton, W. E. / Abraham Lincoln, amerikanin en büyük reisi cumhuru 1930 - in Turkish
Box 14			Bowers, John Hugh / Life of Abraham Lincoln 1922
Box 14			Bungener, F. / Lincoln sa vie son oeuvre et sa mort 1865 - in French
Box 14			Chien, Chih-shiu / Lincoln [1918] - in Chinese
Box 14			Heath, Virginia / The Story of Lincoln 1906
Box 14			[Hinton, Richard J.] / The life and public services of Hon. Abraham Lincoln, of Illinois, and Hon. Hannibal Hamlin, of Maine 1860
Box 14			Hsu, Shou-yi / Lincoln [1925] - in Chinese
Box 14			Ikeda, Nobumasa / Ai to seigi no iijn Rinkan [1950] - in Japanese; hardcover, 2 volumes
Box 15			Ikeda, Nobumasa / Ai to seigi no iijn Rinkan [1950] - in Japanese; paperback, 2 volumes
Box 15			Johnson, Allen / Beikoku san'ijin no shogai to sono shiteki haikei 1928 - in Japanese, translated from English
Box 15			Kamenskii, A. V. / A. Linkoln ego zhizn I ob shchestvennaia dieia tel'nost [1891] - in Russian
Box 15			Kamenskii, A. V. / Abraam Linḳoln, der befrayer fun di shḳlaṿen, zayn leben un gezellshafṭlikhe arbeyṭ 1910 - in Yiddish
Box 15			Matsumura, Kaiseki / Aburahamu Rinkorun den [1925] - in Japanese (2 copies)
Box 15			Nobechi, Tenma / Rinkan monogatari 1930 - in Japanese
Box 15			Raymond, Henry J. / The life of Abraham Lincoln [1864]
Box 15			Reiter, Harriet G. / Story of Lincoln 1910
Box 15			Ross, Riley R. / Abraham Lincoln 1910
Box 15			Sawada, Ken / Dorei kaiho no chichi Rinkan 1950 - in Japanese; hardcover and paperback (2 copies)
Box 16			Schreider, Solomon / Toldot anshe ha-shem 1873 - in Yiddish
Box 16			Schurz, Carl / Abraham Lincoln 1908 - in German
Box 16			Scripps, John Locke / Life of Abraham Lincoln 1931
Box 16			Skarstedt, Ernst / Abraham Lincoln : en levnads- och karaktärsteckning 1918 - in Swedish; one edition published in Sweden, the other in the US (2 copies)
Box 16			Tomojiro, Tomono / Linciln and Washington [1927] - in Japanese
Box 16			Victor, O. J. / The Private and public life of Abraham Lincoln 1864
Box 16			Wright, Harrison King / Lincoln [Life of Abraham Lincoln] 1920 - in Chinese
Box 16			Yanaihara, Tadao / Yo no sonkei suru jinbutsu [1940] - in Japanese
Box 16			No author given undated
		Book reviews - arranged alphabetically by book title
Box 16			A 1928-1941 (2 folders)
Box 17			G-W 1928-1941
		Children's books
Box 17			Coblentz, Catherine Cate / Martin and Abraham Lincoln 1947
Box 17			Courtenay, Calista McCabe / Abraham Lincoln 1917
Box 17			Ikeda, Nobumasa / [Lincoln] [1950] - in Japanese (2 copies)
Box 17			Lowitz, Sadydebeth and Anson / Barefoot Abe 1938 - signed by authors
Box 17			Shibano, Tomizo / Rinkan [1950] - in Japanese
Box 17			Wanamaker, John / The Wanamaker primer on Abraham Lincoln: Strength, mind, heart, will, the full-rounded man, the typical American example of the Rule of four 1909
Box 17			Wise, Winifred / Lincoln's secret weapon 1961
Box 17			Yeaton, Clyde Elizabeth / Boy of the backwoods 1942
		Congressional records - arranged by date
Box 18			Miscellaneous 1832-1864, 1907-1910, 1913-1941 - bill notices, state legislature activity, proclamations, etc., including some on slavery and secession (12 folders)
		Educational materials - arranged alphabetically by publisher or group
Box 19			A. Flanagan Company 1908 - Lincoln Day entertainments
Box 19			American Educational Association 1927 - Lincoln folders
Box 19			Colorado Department of Public Instruction 1909 - Memorial Day annual
Box 19			Elbridge Entertainment House undated - Help-U Washington-Lincoln Collection'
Box 19			F.A. Owens Publishing 1906, 1912, 1915 - Instructor Entertainment/Literture Series
Box 19			March Brothers Publishers 1900, undated - Lincoln exercises
Box 19			New York State Education Department 1909 - Lincoln Centenary materials
Box 19			North Dakota Department of Public Instruction 1911, 1913, 1924 - miscellaneous publications
Box 19			Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. 1925-1926, undated - Lincoln Birthday service. Material from their missionary divisions
Folder 1			Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. 1925 - Lincoln's Birthday Offering poster
Box 19			Public Schools of the District of Columbia 1909 - Lincoln Centenary observance
Box 19			School Publishing Co. undated - Lincoln Entertainment no.1'
Box 19			West Virginia State Department of Free Schools 1925 - Programs for special days
Box 19			William Beverly Harison [is this spelled right?] 1903 - "Winnowings for Lincoln's birthday" by Agnes Mawson
		Exhibitions
Box 19			Miscellaneous 1899, 1926, 1936
		Interviews
Box 19			Miscellaneous 1908, undated
		Lectures - includes both standalone events as well as conference presentations; arranged chronologically
Box 19			Miscellaneous 1851, 1868, 1872, 1923
Box 20			Miscellaneous 1915, 1928, 1940, 1948, 1950, 1986, undated (2 folders)
		Monuments and memorials - souvenir booklets, programs, guides, etc.
Box 20			Abraham Lincoln [Birthplace] National [Historical] Park, LaRue County, KY 1938
Box 20			Abraham Lincoln Memorial Garden, Springfield, IL 1935
Box 20			The Hoosier Youth statue, Fort Wayne, IN 1932
Box 20			Indiana Lincoln Memorial 1938 - report
Box 20			Lincoln-Burns Event Memorial Tablets, Gettysburg, PA 1917 - presentation and unveiling
Box 20			Lincoln-Douglas Debate statue in Freeport, IL 1929
Box 20			Lincoln Log Cabin, Hodgenville, KY 1927
Box 20			Lincoln Memorial, Washington DC 1913, 1922, 1927, 1936
Box 20			Lincoln Memorial Way through Indiana 1932 - commission report
Box 20			Lincoln memorials in the US 1927, 1937, undated - guides to various memorials across the country
Box 20			Lincoln Monument, Springfield, IL 1879, [1924]
Box 20			Lincoln Museum/Oldroyd Collection, Ford's Theater, Washington, DC 1935 - History of...
Box 20			Lincoln Park, Chicago, IL 1909
Box 20			Mount Rushmore 1938
Box 20			Miscellaneous 1908, 1918-1923
		Organizations
Box 21			Abraham Lincoln Association 1925, 1930-1935, undated - Bulletin of... ; miscellaneous (3 folders)
Box 21			American Bar Association 1924, 1926, 1928 - journal articles, Citizenship Committee pamphlet (2 folders)
Box 21			American Civil War Veterans, London Branch 1920, 1924-1925 - souvenir booklet; surviving comrade list; quarterly report
Box 21			American-Japan Society 1927, 1929-1930 - Lincoln Essay Contest special bulletins
Box 21			American Missionary Association 1924-1925, 1932, undated - Lincoln Day leaflets
Box 21			Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society 1977 - newsletter
Box 21			Elizabethtown Women's Club 1922 - memorial brochure
Box 21			Hamilton Club of Chicago 1911 - bulletin, The Hamiltonian
Box 21			Illinois State Historical Library 1913 - report on "The Lincoln Way"
Box 21			Illinois State Historical Society 1915, 1931 - reprints
Box 21			Lincoln Centennial Association 1928-1929 - Bulletin of...; miscellaneous
Box 21			Lincoln Farm Association 1927, undated - booklets
Box 21			Lincoln Fellowship [NY] 1908-1912 - 1st-4th annual meetings, memoriam (2 folders)
Box 22			Lincoln Fellowship of Pennsylvania 1947 - newsletter
Box 22			Lincoln Foundation 1922, 1924, 1926 - constitution and bylaws, manuscripts
Box 22			Lincoln Memorial University 1917, 1928, 1931, 1937-1941, 1949 - miscellaneous publications including poster stamp booklet (3 folders)
Box 22			Lincoln National Life Foundation [Lincoln National Life Insurance Co.] 1929, 1933-1934, 1939-1940, 1960, 1965-1969 - mostly Lincoln Lore (periodical), other publications (4 folders)
Box 22			Oakwood Lincoln Club 1930 - inaugural meeting
Box 22			Prohibition Educational League of New York County undated - pamphlet
Box 22			Spanish American Institute 1926-1927 - Lincoln Day issues of "The Mexican boy"
Box 22			State of Illinois 1944, undated - travel information, other
Box 22			Urban League of Philadelpia 1927 - annual report
		Plays
Box 22			Abraham Lincoln / Luedke, Hermann 1928 - in German
Box 23			Avraam Linko'ln / Drinkwater, John 1921 - in Russian
Box 23			A Child-handled knife / Conkle, E.P. 1949
Box 23			The Day that Lincoln died / Prescott, Warren and Hutchins, Will 1912
Box 23			Honest Abe / George, Charles 1940
Box 23			Lawyer Lincoln / Webb, Chase and Smith, Betty 1959
Box 23			The Lawyer of Springfield / Gow, Ronald 1949
Box 23			Lincoln / Drinkwater, John 1930 - in Chinese
Box 23			Lincoln and humanity / Zink, Walter M. 1916 - also contains play "The qualities of Washington" by same author
Box 23			The shot that missed Lincoln / Pollock, Channing 1939
Box 23			Transfusion / Davies, W.W. 1923
Box 23			When Lincoln went flatboating from Rockport / Ehrmann, Bess V. 1930
Box 23			Young Lincoln / Braun, Wilbur 1938
		Poetry
Box 23			A-Z by title 1909, 1914-1915, 1923-1924, 1927, 1934-1936, 1940, undated (3 folders)
		Programs - from various events, arranged by date
Box 23			Miscellaneous 1890, 1896, 1908-1909 (2 folders)
Box 24			Miscellaneous 1909, 1913, 1917, 1922, 1924, 1928-1932, 1935-1938, 1947-1949, 1959, 1965 (8 folders)
		Sermons - arranged by date
Box 24			Miscellaneous 1865, 1907, 1909
Box 25			Miscellaneous 1911, 1916-1917, 1940, 1946, 1948, 1950, undated (3 folders)
		Souvenirs - includes booklets, postcards, photo, decals
Box 25			Miscellaneous 1903, 1930, 1934, undated
		Miscellaneous
			Books
Box 25				Bramantip, Bocardo / The Abraham Lincoln myth 1894 - Author pseudonym for Buel, Oliver Prince
Box 25				Brooks, Noah / Lincoln by friend and foe 1864 (2 copies)
Box 25				Cody, Sherwin / An evening with Lincoln 1907
Box 25				Collis, Charles H. T. / The Religion of Abraham Lincoln 1900
Box 25				D'Althan, Nino / Dall'urbe all'orbe 1930 - in Italian
Box 25				Dwyer, James Francis / The Bust of Lincoln 1912
Box 25				East, Ernest E. / Abraham Lincoln sees Peoria 1939 (2 copies)
Box 25				Fitzgerrell, J. J. / Lincoln was a spiritualist 1924 - includes The religion of Abraham Lincoln by B.F. Austin
Box 26				Fortenbaugh, Robert / Lincoln and Gettysburg 1949
Box 26				Foster, B. G. / Abraham Lincoln inventor 1928
Box 26				Hewitt, Edward Ringwood / Ringwood Manor: the home of the Hewitts 1946
Box 26				Hubbard, Elbert / Little journeys to the homes of American statesmen: Abraham Lincoln 1898
Box 26				Jacob, Edward J. / Abraham Lincoln delivering his famous speech in Peoria, Illinois on the night of October 16, 1854 1952
Box 26				Jacob, Edward J. / Ninety ears ago 1948
Box 26				Kelley, William D. / Lincoln and Stanton 1885 - missing first 6 pages
Box 26				Kelly, Edward James / The crime at Ford's Theater 1944
Box 26				Mace, William H. / Lincoln and Douglas 1933
Box 26				Manoel, José (da Conceição) / As exequilas de Abrahão Lincoln... [1865?] - in Portuguese (3 copies)
Box 26				McCarty, Burke / The Surpressed truth about the assassination of Abraham Lincoln 1924
Box 26				Pennell, Orin Henry / Religious views of Abraham Lincoln 1899, 1904 (2 folders)
Box 26				Rutherford, Mildred Lewis / Jefferson Davis... and Abraham Lincoln... 1916
Box 26				Rutherford, Mildred Lewis / Truths of history undated
Box 27				Schurz, Carl / Abraham Lincoln, an essay undated
Box 27				Sparks, Edwin Erle / The Lincoln-Douglas debates 1918 - 1 paperback, 1 hardcover (2 copies)
Box 27				Starr, John W. Jr. / New light on Lincoln's last day 1926 - signed copy
Box 27				Warren, Louis A. / Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address undated - signed copy
Box 27				Wing, Henry E. / When Lincoln kissed me 1913
Box 27				Miscellaneous 1935, 1939, 1942, 1963
Box 27			Clippings 1926-1952, undated
Box 27			Miscellaneous

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