Clement Clarke Moore 1844 Poems

This Christmas read to your own children the famous, The Night Before Christmas, from this book read from by Clement Clarke Moore.

There are only a few of this edition in existence. This book's provenance makes it unique.

Rare Book for Sale

I have decided to sell the Ogilby family copy of Clement Clarke Moore's 1844 Poems, placing it into the public domain for posterity. None of the few existing copies have a provenance (below) directly from Moore.

Included is the famous A Visit from St. Nicolas, referred to through its first line, as The Night Before Christmas.

The Moore and Ogilby families were close friends. Dr. Moore inscribed this volume of Poems to Rev. John D. Ogilby, his fellow scholar and colleague at The New York General Theological Seminary.

There are erratta corrections made by Moore in this book in his own handwriting.

Provenance of the Ogilby family copy of Moore's inscribed 1844 Poems

The children of the Moore's friends, the Ogilby's, to whom the author read A Visit from St. Nicholas:

Children of Rev. John David Ogilby (1810-1851), brother of Rev. F.D.O.:
Charles Fitzrandolph Ogilby (1849-1915)
Arthur Guinness Ogilby - (named after his g/grandfather, Arthur Guinness II, owner of the Dublin brewery.

Children of Rev. Frederick Darley Ogilby (1813-1878) (brother of JDO) - named after his maternal grandfather, Lord Mayor of Dublin
Major F.D.Ogilby II (1841-1877) - Commanding Officer of Fort Apache in the Arizona Territory.
William Stewart Ross Ogilby, Esq. (1844-1914) - named after his maternal grandfather in Limavady, Ireland.

Following the death of Rev. F.D.O., the book passed to his son, W.S.R.O., Esq., my g/grandfather, who graduated Law School, Columbia College 1860.
Following death of W.S.R.O., the book remained in his home library on Staten Island, NY. I have fond memories of my great aunts and my grandfather recounting how this book's author had read the famous poem to their parents. Of course, my father and his sister were read the famous poem from this book by their parents.

Following deaths of WSRO's children and the liquidation of their home library, the book passed to my father, Stewart Ross Ogilby (d. 1978), thence to my mother, Anna Keitt Ogilby. The book became my property following 1993 death of my mother in Naples, Florida.

Due to having been read from over successive Ogilby generations, this treasured book required preservation by means of a twenty-first binding. All internal pages are intact, including Dr. Moore's written presentation To The Rev.D ^r. Ogilby with the best respects of the author. Oct. 1844.

This book, as a collector's item, will become increasingly valuable. I have set the price at $11,500, the sale to be facilitated through a professional escrow service. Interested persons may contact me:

W. Stewart Ross Ogilby
Sarasota, FL
(941) 545-3600