Rare book fair at City College to include Black culture objects
This weekend’s Empire State Rare Book & Print Fair will take place Sept. 27–29 at City College of New York and bring more than 40 rare book exhibitors to City College’s Great Hall (160 Convent Avenue and W. 135th Street) to display and sell rare books, photo prints and documents.
In an email interview with the AmNews, Pom Harrington, owner of the England-based Peter Harrington Rare Books, talked about what all the excitement is about.
AmNews: Does the Peter Harrington collection have a lot of items related to Black history in the U.S.? In England? In the Americas? (Around how many items do you have related to each location?)
Harrington: We have a significant amount of material relating to Black history in both the Americas and Britain, which is constantly being refreshed. Broadly speaking, we have more than 100 items pertaining to Black history, including portraits, posters, pamphlets, and books pertaining to the Civil Rights Movement (detailed notes on a few examples are available here (127599, 145489, 149163), music and sporting heroes (130770, 134416, 149210, 101426, 150557), and literary titans (161915, 166022, 171697, 175408, 173592).
AmNews: What are some of the oldest documents you have related to Black history?
Harrington: Many of our oldest documents pertain to slavery and abolition in England, including The Law of Retribution (1773–77) by Granville Sharp, one of the earliest campaigners for the abolition of the slave trade in Britain, and Thomas Clarkson’s An Essay on the Slavery and Commerce of the Human Species (1786), which was instrumental in recruiting William Wilberforce to the abolitionist movement.
Two notably early items that will be on display at the fair include a first edition of the monumentally influential “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” (1852) and a striking image of a group of itinerant musicians in Cuba from around 1895.
AmNews: How much of this collection will be available for viewing this weekend?
Harrington: We will have a significant selection of material relating to Black history displayed at the fair, from an extremely rare antislavery poem, published in London in 1797 (John Gorton’s “The Negro Suicide”), to the first U.S. edition of Chinua Achebe’s “Anthills of the Savannah” (1988), inscribed to Yvette Le Roy, the founder of Liberty House in Harlem, whose store promoted books by Black authors and sold handcrafts produced by the Mississippi Poor People’s Corporation.
Our showing at the fair spans literature (Toni Morrison, James Baldwin), music (a signed publicity photograph of Sister Rosetta Tharpe), and abolitionist and anti-apartheid writing (Alan Paton’s “Cry, the Beloved Country,” 1948).
Of particular note are two standout items by Langston Hughes, inscribed to a photographer who documented the Harlem Renaissance.
HUGHES, Langston. “Fields of Wonder.” 174409 £2500
HUGHES, Langston. “One-Way Ticket.” 174410 £1500
AmNews: Are other objects searchable, at least by title, on your website?
Harrington: All our catalogued stock that is currently available for sale is available on our website (www.peterharrington.co.uk). Some available items may temporarily be taken offline if held in reserve for customers who have expressed an interest in purchasing them, but in general, visiting our website would give you the most up to date access to our stock of rare and antiquarian books.
AmNews: Besides the historic and even monetary value of these items, what is a major reason you find customers come to rare book fairs? What could visitors to this weekend’s event expect?
Harrington: Rare book fairs offer a unique opportunity to see, hold, and acquire works that are touchstones of intellectual and cultural heritage. Whether it’s a first edition of a literary classic or a rare manuscript with an extraordinary provenance, there’s something deeply captivating about the tangible link to the past that these books represent.
At this weekend’s Empire State Rare Book and Print Fair, visitors can expect a curated selection of rare works, each with a unique story. Beyond the books, they’ll engage with expert dealers who provide insights into the significance of the items. It’s a chance for collectors to explore, learn, and connect with a community of like-minded bibliophiles.
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