Connecticut River Book Auction
September 6th, 2024
949 Main Street South Glastonbury, CT 06073
860-908-8067 ctriverbookauction.com

SOUTH GLASTONBURY, CONN. — Ah, the Gilded Age, when the rich and socially elite did not mingle much with the common folk. Enclaves like Newport, R.I., allowed people of taste and grace to congregate and exchange pleasantries among their own kind. Another such location was Tuxedo, N.Y., which has been described as, “a caricature of the Victorian millionaire’s mania for exclusiveness.” Located a short distance from New York City, it offered an escape from the dirt and grime of the Big Apple for gentle lakeshore breezes.

Connecticut River Book Auction’s Friday, September 6, sale at the South Congregational Church at 6 pm offers the opportunity to vicariously participate in the events that mattered to Tuxedo’s residents in the late 1800s.

Tuxedo’s transformation in 1886 from a 6,000-acre wilderness to a compound with 30 miles of roads, a water and sewage system, two blocks of stores, a police station and initially 22 cottages, was a remarkable feat of construction accomplished by an estimated 1,800 Italian and Slav immigrants. Those cottages mentioned were humble structures containing only five to 10 bedrooms apiece. Later buildings grew in size with the Richard Mortimer’s Italian-style villa totaling 54 rooms. In keeping with the Italian motif, entrance to this property was through an enormous iron gate flanked by two lions. One would then journey down a “majestic avenue” past marble busts of Roman emperors to the front door.

Amenities at Tuxedo included a fish hatcher, to insure that an angler would never end the day unhappily, tennis courts and playing fields. There was a stately clubhouse whose calendar of events guaranteed that no one could ever lay claim to the complaint that there was nothing to do. Indeed, until the early 1970s one highlight of the busy social calendar was the debutante ball where upper-class young women made their entrance into the world of high society. All of this magnificence was surrounded by a 24-mile, 8-foot-high barbed wire fence that was patrolled round-the-clock, insuring privacy for its residents.

can imagine joining “the committee appointed to examine into the original historical names of the Tuxedo Region.” This undertaking began in 1886 and was completed in 1888. Its author was William Waldorf Astor, believed to be Tuxedo’s wealthiest resident until his departure from the states in 1890 to reside in Great Britain. The book, Historical Names of the Tuxedo Region, is bound in its original red cloth and contains its map. Its pages reject the folklore that Tuxedo’s name derives from the formal attire of the day and establishes a 1754 colonial connection. Included with the book is a handwritten letter from William Astor to Mrs Josiah Patterson, dated 1886, thanking her for information regarding this undertaking.

South Congregational Church is at 949 Main Street. For information, www.ctriverbookauction.com or 860-908-8067.

will hold a LIVE and IN-PERSON BOOK AUCTION on SEPTEMBER 6th, 2024 at the South Congregational Church located at 949 Main Street in South Glastonbury, CT 06073. Inspection begins at noon with the auction starting at 6 pm. ABSENTEE / PHONE BIDDERS call 860-908-8067 for Information.
It seems like only yesterday that summer’s heat and humidity was slow cooking New England. Come to think of it, it was only yesterday. That aside, our first auction this fall offers a bountiful harvest of books and ephemera for your perusal.
Like fiction? Then consider these signed novels: “The Kremlin” and “Red October” by Tom Clancy, “Boon Island” by Roberts, “The Rock Road to Dublin” by Stephens and these 1st edition unsigned volumes: “Sons and Lovers” and “Tortoises” by Lawrence, “1984” by Orwell, “God’s Man A Novel on Woodcuts” by Ward or “Kwaidan” by Lafcadio Hearn in its scarce dustjacket to name just a few.
Interested in history? Then examine: “History of the War in the Peninsula and in the South of France from the Year 1807 to the Year 1814” by Napier, “Sailing Ships of New England” by Robinson & Dow (a limited signed ed.), “History of the Expedition to Russia undertaken by the Emperor Napoleon in the Year 1812” by De Segur or “Other Days in Greenwich” by Hubbard (a limited signed ed.) and “Ye Historic of Ye Town of Greenwich” by Mead.
Then again, aviation may be your interest. This auction begins the sale of an incredible aviation collection. Here are a few of the volumes: “Igor Sikorsky His Three Careers in Aviation,” by DeLear and signed by Sikorsky, “Leaves from an Old Log Book,” by Wilson (a limited signed ed.), Flying Gypsies The Chronicle of a 10,000 Mile Air Vagabondage” by De Sibour and “Wings Around the World” by Warthausen.
What about Art? Here’s a small sampling: “Where Land Meets Sea The Tide Line of Cape Cod,” a signed copy by Leighton, “Victorian Radicals from the Pre-Raphaelites to the Arts & Crafts Movement” by Ellis et al., “Chinese Junks A Book of Drawings in Black & White” by Donnelly, and “Mapplethorpe” by Danto with several volumes by Bruce Weber.
To all of this add a signed 1st edition copy {no dj) of Tennessee Williams “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, a lovely full leather 10 volume set of “The Novels of Charlotte, Emily and Anne Bronte,” several 1930s issues of STAGE the Magazine of After Dark Entertainment, and William Astor’s {1888) ) “Report to the Executive Committee of the Tuxedo Club,” with a signed Astor letter and you have the makings of a fine evening. And that’s not even mentioning the WWI ephemera, the signed Rockwell Kent volumes, signed Dick Francis, and signed Johnny Cash volumes for sale.
For more information on this 6 pm, Friday, September 6th book auction to be held at the South Congregational Church, 949 Main Street, South Glastonbury, CT 06073 visit ctriverbookauction.com.
South Congregational Church • 949 Main St, South Glastonbury, CT • www.ctriverbookauction.com • 860-908-8067