The Latter-Day Saints' Millennial Star (Volumes 1-60 in 54 books)
Liverpool: Thomas Ward; P. P. Pratt; Orson Hyde; Orson Pratt; F. D. Richards; Samuel W. Richards; Asa Calkin; Amasa Lyman; George Q. Cannon; Daniel H. Wells; A. Carrington; Horace S. Eldredge; Joseph F. Smith; John Henry Smith; George Teasdale; William Budge; Daniel H. Wells; Anthon H. Lund; Brigham Young; Rulon S. Wells, 1840-1898. First Edition. Octavo [22 cm] Bound in various different bindings, most contemporary, some cloth, some leather. The spines and hinges have had periodic restoration work. The extremities are rubbed to varying degrees. The backstrips have occasional losses and chips. There are cracks to the hinges, joints, and text blocks here and there. The brief markings to the pages are hardly worth mentioning, often only filling in errors in printed pagination (occasionally the pages are misnumbered or bound in out of order). The front board and preliminary pages of the combined volume, containing 1, 3, 4, and 5 are detached, but present. Pp. 269-272 of volume 16, number 17 have been cut out. There are tears to the beginning pages of volume 18. Volume 23 is ex-library (just a stamp on the Preface page). Volumes 1, 4, 11, 26, and 27 are missing the title and/or index and preface pages. Volume 30 has some dark staining, the result of pressed flowers having been laid in. In volume 54, the preface and index pages are bound upside down, and roughly a dozen pages have burn marks in the fore-edge margins, resulting in a little loss to the text. The boards of volume 58 are heavily dampstained.
During collation, the following was noted:
Volumes 1, 3, 4, and 5 are bound in one volume. In volume 1, No. 1 is a rare variant, printed in December of 1844, with the prospectus printed in a single column. Volume 3 is missing numbers 1-4. Proclamation of the Twelve, missing pp. 15-16, bound between volumes 3 & 4. Supplement of Joseph Smith's death, printed within black mourning bands, bound between volumes 4 and 5. Supplement to the Millennial Star, December, 1844 (Conclusion of Elder Rigdon's Trial) between volume 5, numbers 7 and 8. Volume 15 has "Supplement 1853 - Special Conference, August 28th, 1852" bound in at the beginning, and "Half Yearly Report of the London Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Held on Saturday & Sunday, 2nd & 3rd July, 1853" bound in at the rear.
Volume 28 is missing number 51.
Volume 37, No. 2 is missing pp. 21-28. No. 9 is missing pp. 135-138. Lacks No. 19 and Nos. 32-40. No. 24 is laid in loosely. No. 31 is missing pp. 487-490, and No. 41 is missing pp. 647-650. Nos. 41 and 42 are detached, but present. No. 47 is lacking pp. 743-746. Volume 33, Numbers 30-40 bound in.
Volume 38. The majority of No. 17 is absent. No. 48 is missing pp. 759-762.
Volume 39. No. 16 lacks pp. 247-250. No. 33 lacks p. 525/26.
Volume 40. No. 2 is missing 23-26. No. 7 is missing 101-108. Nos. 28 and 30 are completely absent.
Volume 48. No. 31. A portion p. 491/92 has been cut out P. 493/94 is absent.
A number of volumes bear the bookplate of Willard Scowcroft. Willard Scowcroft was the son of John Scowcroft, owner of Scowcroft & Sons, which began as a candy confectionery and bakery in Ogden, Utah. The business eventually developed into a general merchandise and wholesale trade. Volume 20 has the bookplate of George L. Lambert. Volume 35 is ex-libris George Q. Cannon, with his bookplate on the front pastedown.
A nice run of this important and influential LDS paper. Flake 4779. Item #62395
These issues of the "Millennial Star" cover the founding of the British Mission, through the expulsion of the Saints from Nauvoo, the founding of Deseret, the American Civil War and up to the early 1930s.
"Millennial Star" was a newspaper penned for Saints in the United Kingdom. "The Star" provided the important function of disseminating doctrine and thoughts from leaders, and also informing the Saints of news from their American counterparts. Founded in 1840 by Parley Pratt, this paper enjoyed the longest run of any L.D.S periodical, ceasing publication in 1970.
This important set of periodicals belonged to the prominent and widely influential Salt Lake City businessman Herbert S. Auerbach, with his notes present at the head of many of the issues. These notes are often in reference to the rareness of a specific volume. Herbert S. Auerbach was a Salt Lake City, Utah businessman widely known for his large personal collection of Western Americana and material relating to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His collection was the focus of two important sales, which took place in 1947 and 1948, and which resulted in two distinguished catalogues titled "The Distinguished Collection of Western Americana: Books, Newspapers and Pamphlets, Many relating to the Mormon Church,"produced by Parke-Bernet Galleries, and issued in two parts. These catalogues are viewed as excellent reference sources for early Mormon materials. The introduction to a later Respess Press catalogue states, "Mr. Auerbach's interest in pioneer lore was sparked both by his travels through the country as a mining engineer and by the tales his father and uncle told of their experiences in the West during the gold rush years and after. His grandparents had crossed the Plains in the early years of the western expansion, indeed his grandmother was the first Jewish woman to travel overland, and their stories enthralled him... With a background that included western pioneers, as well as first generation immigrants, Herbert made a devoted study of western history that resulted in one of the great collections of Western Americana ever assembled."
Herbert, along with his brother, Frederick, founded the firm F. Auerbach & Brothers in Salt Lake City. The firm later became the Auerbach Company, one of the prominent mercantile companies of the region. In 1925, Herbert was elected to the Utah state senate.
Price: $25,000.00