Mr Erasmus Galton’s ascent of Mont Blanc is illustrated and described on pages 93 and 94 of ‘The Illustrated London News’, 8 February 1851. Around the same time Albert Smith at the Egyptian Hall gave very popular talks on his own ascent of Mont Blanc.
The Great Chang was giant sized and spent much of his life touring to earn a living. The internet has considerable information about him. See also Ref. no. N1931 for a colourful lithograph advertising The Great Chang Polka.
Dr Lynn is pictured on one side, with a very flattering article about his magic and his manner on the reverse.
All attendees were given a box like this, although the contents might vary between boxes. The contents all related to aspects of the first 100 years of the Davenports business and included the programme for the weekend.
The Davenport Centenary Celebration in Brighton in 1998 was quite an occasion. This file contains a small fraction of relevant information including planning, advance publicity, activities during the weekend and press coverage.
When Lewis Davenport’s Mickey Mouse automaton (Ref. no. N834) was renovated by Harry Carson he used the illustration of Mickey’s cloths as a model. On the reverse side of the page are drawings by the well known American illustrator James Swinnerton, unrelated to magic.
The envelope is addressed to Gus Davenport at 15 New Oxford Street, which at the time was Davenports shop address. The envelope with the magazine inside was rediscovered in 2019 during a sort out!
This is Elcock’s original artwork for page 188 of the November 1913 issue of ‘The Magician Monthly’. The sketches are from the Magicians’ Club entertainment on 9 November. Elcock’s sketches cover Mr Chas Morritt; Mr David Devant; Chris Van Bern; Eugene Devôt; Lerano; Mr George; Chas Mansfield; Capt Kettle; Mr Ernest Sewell; Mr Collins; Chas H. Vernon; Hewson Brown; Mr Swingler; Claude Chandler. Mysteriously, there is also a sketch of Archibald the Pigeon. The evening is written up on page 185 of the same issue, also illustrated here.
This is an 8 page booklet, 6 pages of which are reproduced here. The Magicians’ Club was founded by Will Goldston in London in 1911. At the time the rules were printed, the headquarters of The Magicians’ Club were at the Palace Hotel, Bloomsbury Street, London, W.C.1. The President was Louis Gautier.
One side of this sheet from the Illustrated London News is an illustration of Mr F. Maccabe’s entertainment “Begone, Dull Care”. The reverse side has an article on Maccabe, along with a second article about him that has been pasted onto the sheet. Maccabe was a very popular protean artiste and ventriloquist in the 1860s and 1870s. There is also an article about Mr. Alfred Burnett, the American Humorist who, with the assistance of Miss Nash, took over at the Egyptian Hall in London when Maskelyne and Cooke had a break in September 1874. A programme for their performance can be found under Ref. no. N1468.
