Margaret Fuller’s Reading Worlds

Primary document

The Gore Hall ledger, 1843–1844

Between 28 August 1843 and 13 June 1844, forty-eight ledger entries record works charged out of the Harvard College Library — then housed in Gore Hall — on the card of Richard Frederick Fuller, Margaret Fuller's younger brother and a senior in the college that year. Women could not borrow at Gore Hall in their own name. Margaret had noted that many of the books she wanted for her western book were to be found at Harvard.

Twenty-two of the authors borrowed are already documented in this catalogue from Fuller's own writings. Six of those — Henry, Adair, Mackenzie, Birkbeck, Drake and Catlin — are the named sources of Summer on the Lakes, in 1843. Their borrow dates fall between September 1843 and January 1844: after the journey, during the writing. The ledger dates the composition of the book rather than its preparation.

The borrower of record is Richard, not Margaret. These entries are evidence of household access to particular editions on particular days. They corroborate and date engagements established elsewhere; they do not establish them, and none of them is counted toward any engagement total on this site.

48
Ledger entries
22
Authors also in the catalogue
6
Named sources of Summer on the Lakes

The ledger, in order of borrowing

  1. 1843 Aug 28
    shelf 2788

    Anacharsis Travels. 2.·Jean-Jacques Barthélemy

    Travels of Anacharsis the Younger in Greece — Eng. transl. popular circ.

    classical travel model

  2. 1843 Aug 31
    shelf 2045

    Marshall's Washington.·John Marshall

    The Life of George Washington — Phila. 1804-07, 5 vols

    Indian policy context

  3. 1843 Aug 31
    shelf 207

    Pitkin's U.-S.·Timothy Pitkin

    A Statistical View / History of the United States — 1816/1828

    commerce / frontier stats

  4. 1843 Sep 7
    shelf 770

    Burke's Works.·Edmund Burke

    Works 8 vols London 1792-1827; also European Settlements in America 1757

    rhetoric

  5. 1843 Sep 7
    shelf Gallow.

    Answer to Tindal. Fr.·[controversial theology]

    Answer to Tindal, Christianity as Old as Creation — Fr. shelf

  6. 1843 Sep 7
    shelf 205

    Clarke on the Attributes.·Samuel Clarke

    Demonstration of Being and Attributes of God

  7. 1843 Sep 18
    shelf F…

    Lardner's Cab.t Cyclop. Haskel's Disc. [?]·Dionysius Lardner ed.

    Cabinet Cyclopaedia 1829-49 — Haskell discourse vol.

    general knowledge

  8. 1843 Sep 21
    shelf 2007

    Oeuvres de Chateaubriand. 2.·François-René de Chateaubriand

    Oeuvres complètes Paris 1826-31 — Atala/René Indian romantic

    Indian sentiment model

  9. 1843 Sep 28
    shelf 799

    Herder's Philos. [Herdeis Philos.]·Johann Gottfried Herder

    Ideen zur Philosophie der Geschichte der Menschheit 1784-91

    Bears on SummerTranscendental history of mankind

  10. 1843 Sep 28
    shelf Toower

    Drake's Indians.·Samuel Gardner Drake

    The Book of the Indians; or Biography and History of Indians of North America Boston 1833

    Bears on SummerNortheastern tribes

  11. 1843 Sep 28
    shelf Toower

    Herschels Nat Philos.·John Herschel

    Preliminary Discourse on Study of Natural Philosophy — Lardner Cyclop vol 1, 1830

    science method

  12. 1843 Oct 2
    shelf 2865

    Webster's Speeches.·Daniel Webster

    Speeches collected

  13. 1843 Oct 2
    shelf Nakit

    Prichard's Phys. Researches.·James Cowles Prichard

    Researches into the Physical History of Man London 1813 / 2nd ed 1826

    Bears on Summerpolygenism/monogenism debate

  14. 1843 Oct 9
    shelf 2864

    Scott's Autobiography.·Sir Walter Scott

    Autobiography

  15. 1843 Oct 16
    shelf A.B.

    Bautros? A. A. Ind. &. [uncert.]·[Asiatick Researches?]

    Possibly Asiatick Researches vol — misreading of clerk hand — mark [?]

    compare orientalism

  16. 1843 Oct ~23
    shelf 2770

    Addisons Works.·Joseph Addison

    Works incl.

  17. 1843 Oct 23
    shelf 2770

    Spectator.·Addison / Steele

    The Spectator

  18. 1843 Oct 30
    shelf 1060

    Bowers Travels. / Bowers?·[Travel]

    Bowers Travels 1060-range = American travel cluster

    frontier

  19. 1843 Oct 30
    shelf 811

    Williams Med Jurispruden·[Medical Jurisprudence]

    Williams Medical Jurisprudence

  20. 1843 Nov 2
    shelf 2523

    Marshall's Washington.·John Marshall

    2nd copy Life of Washington — different edition

  21. 1843 Nov 6
    shelf 2652

    Middleton's Cicero.·Conyers Middleton

    History of Life of Marcus Tullius Cicero London 1741

    Latin training

  22. 1843 Nov 6
    shelf 1269

    Henry's Travels in Canada.·Alexander Henry

    Travels and Adventures in Canada and Indian Territories 1760-1776 New York: Riley 1809

    Bears on SummerCore — “I take more pleasure in both Carver and Henry”

  23. 1843 Nov 14
    shelf 1040

    Adair's Hist.r Amer. Indians.·James Adair

    The History of American Indians; Particularly … Mississippi … London: Dilly 1775

    Bears on SummerCherokee ethnology

  24. 1843 Nov 20
    shelf 1070

    Mackenzie's Voyages &.·Sir Alexander Mackenzie

    Voyages from Montreal … to Frozen and Pacific Oceans 1789/93 London 1801

    Bears on SummerNorthwest voyageur route

  25. 1843 Nov 24
    shelf 1276

    Letters from Illinois (Birkbeck)·Morris Birkbeck

    Letters from Illinois / Notes on Journey in America — Phila. 1818 / London 1818

    Bears on SummerPrairie settlement model

  26. 1843 Nov 27
    shelf 1220

    Sitten und Wilden. 2. [Sitten der Wilden]·German trans. Lafitau?

    German “Customs of Savages” — Die Sitten der Wilden 1752-53 — need Harris German cat check [?]

    Bears on Summerdirect German American Indian source

  27. 1843 Dec 11
    shelf 1039

    Lardner's Cab.t Cyp. Brit. Statesmen. 2.·Lardner ed.

    Cabinet Cyclopaedia — British Statesmen

  28. 1843 Dec 11
    shelf 2209

    Platonis Opera.·Plato

    Platonis Opera — Bekker ed. 1816-23 common

    Plato studies 1843-44

  29. 1844 Jan 1
    shelf 2002

    Catlin's N. A. Indians.·George Catlin

    Letters and Notes on Manners, Customs, and Condition of North American Indians London: Published by Author 1841 / New York Wiley & Putnam 1841 — 2 vols 309 engravings

    Critical to SummerChief mourning portrait — key p242

  30. 1844 Jan 4
    shelf 2002

    Ovidii Heroides.·Ovid

    Heroides — 2002 reuse indicates Harris 1840 card cat collision

    senior Latin

  31. 1844 Jan 4
    shelf 2513

    " Delphini.·Ovid — Delphin

    Ovid Delphini edition 1670s Jesuit

  32. 1844 Jan 8
    shelf 2351

    " Opera Burmanni.·Ovid — Burman

    Pieter Burman variorum ed. 1727

  33. 1844 Jan 18
    shelf 1477

    Spinoza opera. &.·Baruch Spinoza

    Opera posthuma 1677 / Paulus ed 1802

    German Idealism precursor

  34. 1844 Feb ~12
    shelf 2354

    Ovid. Burnman.·Ovid — Burman

    2nd borrowing — same edition

  35. 1844 Feb 19
    shelf 2219

    Shakespeare's Works.·William Shakespeare

    Malone or Stockdale ed.

  36. 1844 Feb 20
    shelf 733

    Buhle Geschichte der Philos.·Johann Gottlieb Buhle

    Geschichte der neuern Philosophie Göttingen 1800-04 6 vols

    Bears on Summerhistory of philosophy

  37. 1844 Feb 20
    shelf 5._

    Ciceronis Opera. &.·Cicero

    Ciceronis Opera

  38. 1844 Mar 8
    shelf 2810

    Gibbon's Roman Empire.·Edward Gibbon

    Decline and Fall London 1776-88

  39. 1844 Mar 26
    shelf 2048

    Hoffmann's Schriften.·E.T.A. Hoffmann

    Gesammelte Schriften / Schriften Berlin 1820s

    German Romantic

  40. 1844 Apr 12
    shelf 1296

    Siles? Reg x2 (1824 [illeg]·[uncert.]

    Ledger faint — “Tales Reg x2 (1824” — needs on-site check [?]

  41. 1844 May 6
    shelf 1947

    Marshalls book?·John Marshall

    3rd ed Life Washington

  42. 1844 May 6
    shelf 2351

    Ovidii Opera Burmanni·Ovid

    Return of Burman

  43. 1844 May 13

    Beaur's Tranche [? Beauchamp?]·[?]

    Uncertain — hand faded bottom folio 221 — mark [illeg]

  44. 1844 Jun 6
    shelf Fo[?]

    Lays Chinese [? Davis's?]·John Francis Davis?

    Ledger reads “Lays Chinese” — likely The Chinese: General Description of China 2 vols — check Harris 1840 cat — mark [?]

  45. 1844 Jun 6
    shelf 2660

    Platons Opera 10·Plato

    Greek Opera vol 10

    Plato studies

  46. 1844 Jun 6
    shelf 2530

    Schleiermachers Plato·F.D.E. Schleiermacher

    Platons Werke von Schleiermacher — German trans/intro Berlin 1804-28

    Transcendental Plato

  47. 1844 Jun 13
    shelf 2140

    Hoffmans Schriften –·E.T.A. Hoffmann

    Same as Mar 26 — re-borrow

  48. 1844 Jun 13
    shelf 2218

    do letzte Erzählungen·E.T.A. Hoffmann

    Die letzten Erzählungen / Neueste Schriften

Bracketed readings and question marks are the transcriber's, preserved as written where the clerk's hand is uncertain or the shelf mark is illegible. Shaded rows are authors already documented in this catalogue.