I’m like Indiana Jones…only in a library

Yes, I know the UCF library does not have a giant bolder threatening to crush you if you take the golden artifact but you might be speared by one of the employees at the media desk if you ask them to help you unravel yourself from the microfilm you attempted to spool in the wrong end of the scanning machine.


Enough factitiousness, I am excited to announce the release of my artifact inventory findings about my historical text: The Female Review: Life of Deborah Sampson.


Q. When, where, and by whom was your text first printed?

A. The text was first published in Dedham, Massachusetts, in 1797, by Nathaniel and Benjamin Heaton.

Speculation:
I think the text was printed by a small family printer because only the brothers’ names are given instead of a printing press name. I also think the author paid for the printing, acting as the publisher, with his own money because it says that it was printed by the brothers “for the AUTHOR” on the original title page. I also found Herman Mann, in the Shaw-Shoemaker print bibliography, Second Series (post-1800 texts), listed as a publisher of everyday papers such as sermons and medical texts.


Q. How often was your text reprinted? List all of the reprints.

A.
• 1866, in Boston, by Wiggin & Lunt, with added introduction and notes by John Adams Vinton.
• 1916, in New York
• 1972, in New York, by Arno Press, with advisory editors Annette Baxter and Leon Stein.
• 1978, by Ayer Company Publishers, Inc.
• 2000 (est.) Library Reprints Inc.
• 2003, New Library Press.net.
• 2009, Applewood Books.
• 2010, January by General Books.
• Unknown date but printed by AMPS Press Inc. after their opening in 1962.

All printing dates after 1972 were found in the Books In Print.com Professional Database.

The WorldCat Database indicates that the majority of versions in libraries are the 1797, 1866 and 1972 versions. The 1866 version can still be found in book form but the 1797 version is in microfilm.

Speculation:
According to, A Dictionary of Books Relating to America, by Joseph Sabin, printed in 1962, the title was changed from the 1797, Female Review or Memoirs of an American Young Lady, to the 1866 title, The Female Review Life of Deborah Sampson the Female Soldier in the War of the Revolution.

It seems initially the text was not widely read because the end of the 1797 printing only lists 190 names as the “subscribers.” Also, the 1866 printing is described by A Dictionary of Books Relating to America as consisting of: 250 copies printed with 35 additional large paper copies and 3 on drawing paper (165).

The text does not seem to have changed much since the second, 1866, printing with added notes and introduction. Most publishers simply reprint the 1866 version of the text.

Also, I am not sure how to account for the occurrence of so many reprints after the middle of the 20th century. Perhaps this is due to the copyright expiring, advances in digital scanning and reprinting, or a revived interest in women’s studies after 1970.


Q. What was the actual size of your text in inches or centimeters?

A. The text was 17 centimeters.


Q. What information can you find about its physical presence, binding, etc.?

A. The binding was leather and the portrait was an “Intaglio” print.


Q. Do you think it was expensive or inexpensive?

A. Yes, I believe it was an expensive book.


Q. View the original title page using the digital database or microfilm. What is included there?

A. “The female review: or, Memoirs of an American young lady; whose life and character are peculiarly distinguished--being a Continental soldier, for nearly three years, in the late American war. During which time, she performed the duties of every department, into which she was called, with punctual exactness, fidelity and honor, and preserved her chastity inviolate, by the most artful concealment of her sex. With an appendix, containing charcteristic traits, by different hands; her taste for economy, principles of domestic education, &c. By a citizen of Massachusetts. Dedham: Printed by Nathaniel and Benjamin Heaton for the author. M,DCC,XCVII"

Speculation:
In this title Mann seems to stress that Deborah Sampson is still a true lady even though she cross-dressed as a man and fought in the revolution. It is clear that she is to be received as an American war hero because she successfully performed the same duties of any man in the war.


Q. Is there more than one edition? Compare the title pages.

A. In the second printing, in1866, the title was changed to say:

“The Female Review Life of Deborah Sampson The Female Soldier in the War of the Revolution with an introduction and notes by John Adams Vinton Boston J.K. Wiggin & WM. Parsons Lunt MDCCCLXVI"

Speculation:
The scrolling title was probably shortened to reflect an evolving style for printing titles.


It is interesting that the editors change the title to state that Deborah Sampson was “The Female Soldier” in the revolution. The sensational wording about her being a lady performing a man’s duties in the war is now gone.


Q. What miscellaneous front matter exists?

A. An engraving of a portrait of Deborah Sampson is the Frontispiece. The portrait is surrounded by American flags, an eagle holding a shield with the stars and stripes, a sword, a drum, what appears to be a rifle and a powder bowl and various plant branches and a crown of leaves. Underneath this it says, “Published by H. Mann 1797.”

There is a dedication to the “Patrons and friends of Columbia’s Cause; The Female Review.”

On the next page it says that it was published by an act of congress.

There is a Preface from Herman Mann.

There is an Appendix:

“Containing—Characteristic Traits and Reflections, with Remarks on Domestic Education and Economy."

Speculation:
This extremely patriotic portrait shows Sampson in a dress but surrounded by war memorabilia. It might be a standard frame for portraits of American soldiers of the day.


The dedication seems to say that the book was not written to encourage other women to go to war but to preserve the history of the revolutionary war.


The preface discussed the fact that Sampson is not a fictional character and did fight in the revolution. It describes how the author met with her to record her life as she remembered it and that he tried to be impartial but he also wanted to make it entertaining and useful as history. He makes a final note that America should embrace its heroine and not reject her.

The Appendix describes Sampson as being humble while enlisted because she never accepted a promotion and did not want to compete with fellow soldiers.


Q. How long is your text? Is the print large and easy to read or dense, with many words on each page and lines close together?

A. The text is 260 pages and is twelve chapters long. The print is dense but the lines are far enough apart that it is not too difficult to read. The summary paragraphs at the beginning of each chapter are pressed together more tightly and difficult to read. There are also a few sporadic ink smudges, water stains and tears in the paper.

Speculation:
This seems to be an average length for a popular novel written today.  The floral designs used at the beginning of each chapter are interesting and probably raised the printing costs of the book.


Q. What back matter exists?

A. After “THE END” there is a list of subscribers to the first printing.  There is also an “Errata” with a few errors corrected.

Speculation:
The list of subscribers consists mainly of men living in the northeast of America and shows that this was the makeup of the initial audience. Some of these men are listed as lawyers, doctors, reverends, associated with a college or the military.  The price of the book may have contributed to subscribers being mostly affluent.