The Life of Abraham Lincoln.

TARBELL, Ida M.

$1,750.00

Item Number: 129092

New York: Lincoln History Society, 1909.

Bound set of Tarbell’s classic biography of President Lincoln. Octavo, 4 volumes, bound in full morocco, gilt titles and tooling to the spine, gilt facsimile signature of Lincoln to the front panel, frontispiece portraits, one in color, illustrated with reproductions of original paintings and photographs, marbled endpapers. In good condition.

Meant to compete against a Century Magazine series which had been written by Lincoln's private secretaries, John Nicolay and John Hay, Tarbell's 20-part series, The Life of Abraham Lincoln was a massive success and earned Tarbell a national reputation as a major writer and the leading authority on Abraham Lincoln. The popular series, based on Tarbell's own original research and interviews, helped boost McClure's circulation to over 250,000 which climbed to over 300,000 by 1900 and allowed McClure to buy a printing plant and a bindery. Tarbell went on to publish five books about Lincoln and traveled on the lecture circuit, recounting her discoveries to large audiences.