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Posted by: Marianna Stell
Clementina Rind (d. 1774) was the first female newspaper printer in Virginia and associated with Thomas Jefferson, Peyton Randolph, and other American founding fathers. The Rare Book and Special Collections Division at the Library of Congress holds a controversial religious text given to her by her father, which was later owned by Thomas Jefferson.
Posted in: American History, Provenance, Women in Book History
Posted by: Amanda Zimmerman
Among many fascinating books related to the Civil War, the Library of Congress also holds a demurely-bound, water-damaged volume inscribed by its author. This volume, the autobiography of Confederate spy and Maryland native Rose O'Neal Greenhow (1815-1864), documents her exploits as a persistent thorn in the side of President Abraham Lincoln and the Union cause.
Posted in: 19th Century, American History, Women in Book History
Posted by: Marianna Stell
Christine de Pizan (1364-1430), first professional woman author in Europe, was considered by Simone de Beauvoir to be the first woman to 'take up her pen in defense of her sex'. The Library of Congress has a rare copy of Christine’s work, Epistre d'Othea, printed by Philippe Pigouchet around 1499.
Posted in: Manuscript and Letterpress (Hand Press), Women in Book History