News  January's Collection Spotlight: Farmer's Almanacs 

Farmer's Almanac: Calculated on a New and Improved Plan, for the Year of Our Lord 1793...

(Boston: Belknap & Hall, 1793)

The Farmer’s Almanack, on a New and Improved Plan, for the Year of our Lord 1803...

(Boston: John West, 1803)

The Farmer’s Almanack calculated on a New and Improved Plan for the Year of our Lord 1814...

(Boston: West & Richardson, 1814)

We’re starting the year by displaying three volumes of the Farmer's Almanac, open to pages from the 1793, 1803, and 1814 editions. The almanacs are bound in ten-year increments and are the earliest versions of the publication now known as the Old Farmer's Almanac ("Old" was used intermittently in the 1830s but added to the title permanently in 1848). Publication began in 1792 with the 1793 edition and continues today, giving it the distinction as the oldest continuously running publication in North America. It was founded by Grafton, Massachusetts resident Robert Bailey Thomas, who served as its editor until his death in 1846. As stated on the 1793 title page, the almanac was “fitted for the town of Boston, but will serve for any of the adjourning States.”

Visit us from January 7 through February 4 to see these three volumes on display! Read more about these almanacs and find links to the other almanacs that we’ve displayed in previous years in our recent blog post.