1881 Mauna Loa Lava Flow Hawaii, Newsboys Excursion, Colorado Travel — Sept 3
$38.88
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1881 Mauna Loa Lava Flow Hawaii, Newsboys Excursion, Colorado Travel — Sep 3
📜 ABOUT THIS PIECE OF HISTORY 📜
This September 3, 1881 issue of Harper's Weekly is a geographically sweeping and socially rich late summer number — a volcanic eruption in Hawaii, the hardships of Colorado mountain travel, a heartwarming newsboys excursion, a sharp child welfare political cartoon, and the technological marvel of a lighted harbor buoy. For collectors of Hawaiian history, Colorado frontier history, New York City social history, Victorian technology, and Gilded Age Americana, this issue is a vivid and historically engaging primary source.
🌋 "THE LAVA FLOW FROM MAUNA LOA, SANDWICH ISLANDS" — FOUR SCENES
The most historically significant and visually spectacular content in this issue is the full page presenting four scenes of the lava flow from Mauna Loa on the Sandwich Islands — what we know today as Hawaii. The great Mauna Loa eruption of 1881 sent a massive lava flow toward the city of Hilo that threatened to destroy it entirely before finally stopping just a mile from the bay — one of the most dramatic volcanic events in Hawaiian history and a major international news story. Four distinct scenes capture the scale of the eruption, the advancing lava, and the dramatic landscape transformation wrought by one of the world's most active volcanoes. Hawaii was not yet a United States territory in 1881 — it would not be annexed until 1898 — making this a rare and historically significant illustrated document of the independent Kingdom of Hawaii at a moment of natural crisis. A primary source of exceptional interest to collectors of Hawaiian history, volcanic geology history, and Victorian world news illustration.
🎨 FULL FRONT PAGE — W.A. ROGERS: "CAN NOT NEW YORK PROTECT HER LITTLE ONES?"
The full front page delivers a political cartoon by W.A. Rogers — "Can Not New York Protect Her Little Ones?" — a forceful and emotionally charged call for better child protection in New York City, at a time when the exploitation of child labor, street children, and juvenile poverty were among the most urgent social reform issues of the Gilded Age. A fully displayable piece of great appeal to collectors of child welfare history, New York City social history, and Victorian American reform illustration.
📰 "EXCURSION OF NEWSBOYS & BOOTBLACKS"
A full-page illustration documenting a charitable summer excursion for newsboys and bootblacks — the street children who sold newspapers and shined shoes on the corners of Gilded Age New York, many of them homeless or living in the most precarious of circumstances. These excursions, organized by charitable societies and newspapers, gave the city's most vulnerable young workers a rare day of fresh air, food, and play — and this engraving captures the joy, the energy, and the human dignity of these children with warmth and social historical significance. A primary source document of New York City child welfare history and Gilded Age philanthropic culture.
🏔️ "HARDSHIPS OF TRAVEL IN COLORADO"
A nearly full-page illustration of the hardships encountered by travelers in the rugged mountain terrain of Colorado — treacherous mountain passes, difficult trails, dramatic altitude, and the physical demands of crossing one of America's most spectacular and unforgiving landscapes in the pre-automobile era. A vivid and engaging piece of Colorado frontier history and Victorian American adventure illustration.
🏆 "THE OELRICHS LACROSSE TROPHY" & "THE LIGHTED BUOY, NEW YORK HARBOR"
Two quarter-page illustrations document a celebrated lacrosse trophy — reflecting the growing popularity of the Native American sport among Gilded Age sporting clubs — and the newly deployed lighted buoy in New York Harbor, a technological advance in maritime safety that complemented the electric light at sea coverage of the previous week's issue.
🔍 CONDITION & TRANSPARENCY 🔍
Completeness: Complete 16-page issue.
Authenticity: Guaranteed original woodblock printing from September 3, 1881 — not a reproduction.
Condition Report: Presents well for its 144-year age. Natural toning to the newsprint consistent with age. The Mauna Loa lava flow full page, the W.A. Rogers front page cartoon, the newsboys excursion illustration, and the Colorado hardships print are all clear and displayable.
I photograph every page of every issue so you can inspect the condition closely before purchasing. Please review all images carefully and don't hesitate to ask any questions — I'm happy to provide additional detail or close-up shots of any page, illustration, or area of concern before you buy.
📦 SHIPPING & PRESERVATION 📦
Housed in an acid-free archival folder with Mylar overlay to protect the 144-year-old newsprint
Flat-shipped with heavy-duty reinforcement
Fully tracked for your peace of mind
🏷️ TAGS
1881 Harpers Weekly, Mauna Loa Lava Flow Hawaii 1881, Sandwich Islands Volcano, Kingdom of Hawaii 1881, Newsboys Bootblacks Excursion NYC, Hardships Travel Colorado, WA Rogers Child Welfare Cartoon, Oelrichs Lacrosse Trophy, Lighted Buoy New York Harbor, Hawaiian Volcanic History, Colorado Frontier History, New York Child Welfare 1881, Antique Newspaper 1881, 19th Century Americana, Victorian Hawaii Primary Source
1881 Mauna Loa Lava Flow Hawaii, Newsboys Excursion, Colorado Travel — Sept 3
$38.88