"A book collectoris interested in the

first edition, but anauthor is interested

in the tenth. "-

AnonymousNumber 1 .April 2001

in late summer, growing four to sevenfeet tall with such "clouds of bloom"that it could be used as a hedge. I willleave it up to some astute reader whois familiar with the literature ofbotany to determine if there is anyrelationship of this plant to our H. C.Bolton. Nevertheless, if you'rehungry , I can give you a recipe fortossed dried bean curd with boltonia.And if you're ever in Liverpool, stayat the Boltonia Hotel at 124 AlbertRoad.

As an organization ofbibliophiles,the Bolton Society has someillustrious ancestors. The oldest suchorganization in the United States isthe Grolier Club, founded in NewYork in 1884. There is also evidenceof an organization of bibliophiles inParis in 1824. What becomes of theBolton Society depends on an activemembership-bibliophiles whoborder on being bibliomaniacs and arewilling to share their bibliomania withothers.-.I. J. Bohning

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The Unexpected Bookon tlie Shelf

D uring the time I worked for the

Chemical Heritage Foundation,

it was still located on the campus ofthe University of Pennsylvania. Atleast once a week I would make therounds of the local bookstores,spending hours poring over shelf aftershelf of books that came in all shapes,sizes, and conditions. I sometimes hada small wish list of books that I waslooking for, but more often than not,I was just searching for somethingunexpected that would say, "Pleasetake me home with you." I was never

Editorial Emanationsdisappointed, and at the end of eachweek I had another foot or so of shelfspace filled with my new acquisitions.

One of my stopping places wasout of the way and not well known toother bibliophiles. The ChemistryDepartment library at Penn was onthe top floor of the chemistrybuilding, and there was a small roomin the back where the librarian, CarolCarr, kept her surplus books. Once ina while a Carol would have a sale, butusually it was just a hit-or-missproposition. On one visit I found amagnificent biography of CasparWistar for the amazing price of fiftycents. By this time Carol knew ~well enough that when I brought thebook to the circulation desk to pay forit, she said, "1 just knew that book hadyour name on it. It was waiting for

you!" .But my greatest alid certainly

most unexpected find in that littlechemistry storeroom came one day atthe end of my searching through oldtextbooks of dubious quality andvintage and a large number ofdiscarded unbound journals. As Iturned to face the last shelf on thethird wall, there, at eye level, were all12 volumes of Chymia, each with itsoriginal dust jacket! Each book inCarol's surplus had a color-codedtape, and as I looked up at the pricelist on the wall, I found that the whitetape on each volume meant they were$1.00 each!

I was barely able to contain myexcitement as I brought my newfoundtreasures to the desk. After verifyingthat they were indeed just $1.00, Iquickly handed over the cash andtook my coveted volumes back to myoffice. That night, in the quiet of mystudy at home, I carefully looked over

T his first issue of Boltonia, thenewsletter of the Bolton Society ,

has some of the ingredients of acollectable: it has a limited printingfor a small readership. I hope thatover the years both the print nm andthe readership will grow significantly,but that development depends heavilyon the society's membership. Currentmembers are asked not only to enlistnew members, but also to submititems of interest to the newsletter.Each issue of Boltonia should reflectthe diversity of the collectors, theircollections, and the activities of the

society.One regular feature of Boltonia

introduced in this issue is "TheUnexpected Book on the Shelf," acolumn in which readers can describetheir experience in finding anunexpected treasure, an experiencethat ranks in satisfaction with one ofthe most alluring aspects ofcollecting-the hunt for an elusiveitem whose absence leaves a gapinghole in an otherwise complete set. (Ofcourse, the set is unique, with itslimits and contents defined by thecollector-who is, however, oftenreluctant to redefine the set to excludethe missing item.)

Another column that will appearirregularly is "Bolton Bits," intendedto provide additional informationabout our namesake, HenryCarrington Bolton, thus adding to thetantalizing but teasingly shortbiography appearing in this issue.

If you wish to pay homage toBolton in another way, try growingsome Boltonia asteroides thissummer. Bolton's aster, with white,daisy-like flowers, is native to themidwestern United States and blooms

each volume, assessing that they werein almost mint condition.

My random examination finallyled me to volume I. When I openedup the book and went to the title page,

I found an inscription that said,"To Dr. John Miller, Chymia's firstsubscriber." It was signed by Eva

Armstrong!-J. J. Bohning

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Books

These are the masters who instruct uswithout rods and ferrules,without hard work and anger,without clothes or money.

If you approach them they are not

asleep;if investigating you interrogate themthey conceal nothing;if you mistake them, they never

grumble;if you are ignorant they cannot

laugh at you.

The library of wisdom, therefore,is more precious than all riches, and

nothing that can be wished foris worthy to be compared with it.

Whosoever, therefore, acknowledgeshimself

to be a zealous followerof truth, ofhappiness,of wisdom, of scienceor even of faith,

must of necessity make himselfa lover ofbooks.

-Richard de Bury, "Philobiblon."(Written in 1344, fIrst published in 1474,as quoted in The Library Guide for theChemist, by Robert A. Soule; New York:McGraw-Hill Book Company, fuc. 1938).

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published histories to a meeting thattook place two years earlier inNorthumberland, Pennsylvania, as asignificant antecedent to itsformation. As the first internationalmeeting of chemists in the UnitedStates, the gathering inNorthumberland on 31 July and 1August 1874, included a proposal tostart a national society of chemists,an idea that was rejected at the timebecause a chemical section of theAmerican Association for theAdvancement of Science had recentlybeen formed.

The meeting in Northumberlandhas often been mistakenly called thePriestley Centennial because it didoccur on the centennial of thediscovery of oxygen and in the townwhere Joseph Priestley lived and isburied. Although the meetingincluded the oxygen centennial, it wasmuch broader in scope, with theprincipal speakers directing theiroratory to the celebration of lOO yearsof American contributions tochemistry. None of this would havehappened, however, except for thesuggestion made by Henry CarringtonBolton in a letter to the editors of TheAmerican Chemist and published inthe April 1874 issue. This letterreflects Bolton' s interest in the historyof chemistry and his sense that it wasimportant to make developments inchemistry known to the public. Itseems appropriate, therefore, inrecognition of the 2001 celebration ofthe ACS, to rescue Bolton's letterfrom the obscurity of its publicationin a short-livedjournal and reprint ithere in its entirety.

Centennial of Chemistry,1774-1874

To the Editors of the AmericanChemist:-

Dear Sirs: The year 1774 wasrendered memorab/e by greatchemica/ activity. It is not possib/e toassign to Chemistry any definitebirth-year, but so many remarkab/ediscoveries were made in 1774 thatwe may. with good reason, date the

foundation ofmodern chemicalscience from that period.

It would be quite foreign to theobject we have in view to give hereany detailed account of the state ofthe science at the period referred to.We may mention, however, a few ofthe most important discoveries whichmade the year 1774 noted in theannals ofChemistry.

The eminent Swedish chemist,Scheele, first isolated chlorine,calling it in accordance with theaccepted theories of the day,"dephlogisticated muriatic acid. " He

also recognized baryta as a peculiarearth, and it henceforth took a placeamong the elementary substances.Scheele also published in this sameyear his masterly essay on

Manganese.Lavoisier was engaged in an

investigation of the cause of theincrease in weight of tin whencalcined in close vessel-a researchwhich lead him to subsequentdiscoveries ofimmense proportions.

Wiegleb proved alkalies to be truenatural constitutions ofplants. Cadetdescribed an improved method ofpreparing sulphuric ether. Bergmanshowed the presence of carbonic acidin lead white. On the 27th ofSeptember in this year Comusreduced the 'calces' of the six metalsby means of the electric spark, beforean astonished and delighted audienceof savants. On the first of August,1774, Priestley discovered oxygen,the immediate results ofwhich werethe overthrow of the time-honoredphlogistic theory and the foundationofChemistry on its present basis.

It surely requires no lengthyargument to prove that the year 1774may be well considered as the

starting-point ofmodern chemistry.Now, Messrs. Editors, I propose

that some public recognition of thisfact should be made this comingsummer. IVould it not be an agreeableevent if American chemists shouldmeet on the first day of August, 1874,at some pleasant watering-place, todiscuss chemical questions, especially

Bolton BitsT he year 200 1 marks the 125th

anniversary of the AmericanChemical Society (ACS). Organizedon 6 April 1876, in New York City,the ACS has often referred in its

the wonderfully rapid progress ofchemical science in the past hundred

years?Centennial celebrations are now

in order. The Bostonians haverenewed the memories of the BostonTea Party. Already the countryresounds with preparations for aNational Centennial in 1876. Whyshould not chemists meet to enjoyasocial reunion in commemoration ofevents important alike to science andcivilization? Should this proposedmeeting receive your approbation,have the kindness to oJJer suggestionsas to the proper method of bringing itbefore the scientific portion of thecommunity. Details as to the place,etc., will naturally be deferredfor the

present.Very Truly Yours,H. Carrington Bolton

School of Mines,

Columbia College.[The publication of Bolton's letter

prompted many supportive responses.Rachel L. Bodley , professor of chemistry

at the Woman's Medical College of

Philadelphia, quickly suggestedPriestley's Northumberland as Bolton's

"pleasant watering-place. "]

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Chemistry and CollectingF ormed in Apri12000, the Bolton

Society is the result of efforts byHerbert Pratt, a retired DuPont chemi-cal engineer whose collection of morethan 3,800 titles was amassed over a40-year period. As the author of morethan 200 publications in technologyand history, Herb's expertise spanssuch diverse areas as textile chemistryand dyeing, discovery of commercialprocesses for making calcium andacetylene, history of manmade fibers,technology in the Bible, and Michael

Faraday's religion.Seeking to join together others

who shared his intense interest ofhistory , especially as it related tochemistry and its allied technologies,Herb suggested that this new

organization of chemical bibliophilesaffiliate with the Chemical HeritageFoundation and become an activesupporter of the foundation's DonaldF. and Mildred Topp Othmer Libraryof Chemical History .Finally, heselected Henry Carrington Bolton tobecome the new organization's patronsaint and namesake.

What Is a Bibliophile?A bibliophile is simply a person wholoves books. Derived from the Greekbiblio (book) andphilos (friend), theword bibliophile describes those whoapproach books with a passionbeyond that of the general reader.This unbridled enthusiasm can takemany shapes and forms: love forbooks in general; love for books by aparticular author; love forpresentation copies, first editions, alleditions and printings, or books on afavorite subject; or love for materialwritten about or within a time period.The most dedicated bibliophiles arealso likely to collect manuscripts,images, and ephemera as well asbooks. Many collectors are moreinterested in the bindings, design,illustrations, or production techniquesof their books than the actual texts.

There are common bonds amongall bibliophiles-the passion forcollecting, the thrill of the search,expertise in their fields, and the joy ofswapping stories about collecting andcollections. All forge a camaraderie,mutual respect, and sense offellowship that transcend anydifferences that might otherwise existamong them. The Bolton Societyseeks to be such a community forchemical bibliophiles, those who arelovers of materials about the chemicalsciences and allied technologies.

Who Was Henry CarringtonBolton?The choice of BoIton as the paragonof a chemical bibliophile is mostappropriate. Bolton's chemicalpedigree was impeccable-he studiedwith Dumas, Wurtz, Bunsen, andKirchhoff and received his Ph.D.from Wohler in 1866, at the age of

23. After a brief academic career atColumbia University, Women'sMedical College of New York, andTrinity College in Hartford,Connecticut, Bolton retired in 1887.

Independently wealthy, Boltoncontinued to pursue his interests inhistory and biography while travelingextensively. In 1892 he became a"nonresident lecturer" on the historyof chemistry at George WashingtonUniversity and from 1894 to 1896was also named professor ofbibliography and bibliology .

Bolton organized and headed fortwenty years a committee onbibliography of the AmericanAssociation for the Advancement ofScience. He documented the period1492-1892 in his Select BibliographyofChemistry, published by theSmithsonian Institution in 1893. Withsupplements published in 1899, 1901,and 1904, this massive work listsmore than 15,000 titles in chemistry.

According to Wyndham D. Miles,Bolton was "bald, bearded, andchubby. He was, he said, 'blessedwith a hearty appetite. ' " A "fluent

and charming speaker," Bolton,according to the New York Times,belonged to more learned societiesthan any other living American. AfterBolton died in 1903, his wife,Henrietta Irving, a great grandniece ofWashington Irving, had his bodyinterred in the Irving plot inTarrytown, New York. His extensivecollection of papers and books wasdonated to the Library of Congress.

Objectives of the Bolton SocietyAccording to its bylaws, The BoltonSociety exists "to encourage andpromote the individual love for andcollection of all types of publishedmaterials (books, journals, magazines,trade literature, postage stamps,ephemera, etc.) and unpublishedmaterial (memoranda,correspondence, reports, diaries, etc.)that illuminate and elucidate thehistory and development of thechemical and molecular sciences andtheir associated technologies." It also

BOLTONIA is the newsletter of The

Bolton Society, an organization of

chemical bibliophiles. As a subsidiary of

the Chemical Heritage Foundation, the

Bolton Society promotes the individual

love for and collection of all types of

material related to the history and

development of the chemical sciences and

related technologies. It also advances the

cause of the Donald F. and Mildred T opp

Othmer Library of the Chemical Heritage

Foundation. For more infonnation on the

Bolton Society, contact Elizabeth Swan.

Founder and Chief Bibliophile:Herbert T. Pratt23 Colesbery DriveNew Castle, DE 19720-3201302-328-7273htprtcche@earthlink. net

Chief Bibliophile Elect:Ned Heinde1Department of Chemistry

Lehigh University6 E. Packer Ave.Bethlehem, PA 18015610-758-3464

ndhO@lehigh.edu

seeks "to advance the cause of theDonald F. and Mildred Topp OthmerLibrary of the Chemical HeritageFoundation."

To achieve these objectives, thesociety's activities "shall beconsistent with those of other learnedand professional societies" and "willinclude: holding meetings of themembers at least on an annual basis,publication of a newsletter and othermaterials, holding seminars and

symposia

MembershipThe Bolton Society is open free ofcharge to those who support thesociety's objectives. Currently itsmembers include bibliophiles who areacademic and industrial chemistsand chemical engineers, historians,librarians, philatelists and booksellers.Further information, includingmembership application, a copy of thebylaws, and a membership directory ,are available from the secretary of theBolton Society , Elizabeth Swan.

+++++ Secretary:Elizabeth SwanDirector of Library ServicesChemical Heritage Foundation315 Chestnut StreetPhiladelphia PA 19106-2702215-873-8226

eswan@chernheri tage .org

Newsletter Editor:James J. BohningDepartment of Chemistry

Lehigh University6 E. Packer Ave.Bethlehem PA 18015610-758-3582jjba@lehigh. edu

The Bolton Society toSponsor First Symposium

The Bolton Society is sponsoring itsfirst symposium, " Antiquarian

Chemistry Book Collectors and TheirPublic Collections," at the ChicagoMeeting of the American ChemicalSociety, 26-30 August 2001. Sixspeakers have agreed to discusscollection repositories at theUniversities of Missouri,Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, andKansas and Lehigh and OhioUniversities. Another session isplanned for the Spring 2002 ACSmeeting in Orlando.