The first generation of Baker Street Journal Christmas

The Baker Street Journal (BSJ, which you can subscribe to at https://bakerstreetirregulars.com/the-baker-street-journal) publishes four regular issues each year, and a 'Christmas Annual' (a fifth issue). In the 'modern era' (if that's a thing) the Christmas Annual has been produced each year since 1998. Each Christmas Annual is a special issue that focuses on a single topic. A complete list of issues from 1998 to the present time can be found at the BSJ site (https://bakerstreetirregulars.com/bsj-christmas-annual). This series of Annuals from 1998 to present is actually the second time Christmas Annuals have been published by the BSJ.

Edgar J. Smith launched the BSJ in 1946. The BSJ didn't survive long and failed in 1949, but was relaunched in 1951 and continues to this day. Under Smith's editorship, the BSK released five Christmas Annuals, the first being in 1956, and the fifth and final being published for 1960. The original Annuals contained collections of articles (not too dissimilar from a typical BSJ issue of the time).

I recently managed to pick up a set of this original set of Christmas Annuals at Second Story Books in Rockville MD.

 Each issue carries a near identical cover design with a different color, with a design replicating that of the 1887 Beeton's Christmas Annual that carried the first Holmes story. The concept of the BSJ Christmas Annual is inspired by the Beeton's Christmas Annual issue that is central to the history of Sherlock Holmes publishing, and also captures the mystery of such a rare and valuable issue. 

The opening of the 1956 (first) and 1960 (final) Christmas Annuals capture the inspiration for the launch of the special issues, and also the reason for their termination. I've decided to transcribe those pages here. 

First is the editorial that opened the 1956 issue:

1956 Christmas Annual

The Editors Gas-Lamp

TO MRS. BEETON

It is to Mrs. Beeton that the glory belongs. Some time, somewhere, in middling-to-late Victorian England - though the record sheweth not the date or place - this good lady, who is known to us only by her unadorned surname, conceived the idea of catering to the tastes of her more sensationally-minded countrymen by offering then, once a year, for the small sum of one shilling, a shocker given over to the celebration of gore and low adventure. She called her little paperback - in deference to the time of year at which it appeared, surely, and not because of any beatific attributes in its content - a Christmas Annual; and it was, on all the evidence, a thumping success both of esteem and of the fisc. For we know that it found its way, after not too long, into the hands of the highly respectable publishing firm of Ward, Lock, & Co., of London, New York and Melbourne - if, indeed, it had not been there from the beginning.

We are sentimentally and curiously concerned with the early history of Beeton's Christnmas Annual only for the reason that we know so little about it. The important thing is that, in the year 1887 - but which time Mrs. Beeton herself may have become merely the editor, or no more than the fiction and symbol of sponsorship she had perhaps always been - Ward, Lock & Co. accepted, in behalf of the magazine, a tattered and often-rejected manuscript submitted by a young doctor who had never made much of a success of his profession, and thereby launched him on a career that brought wordly fame to him and unworldly ecstacy to prcessinoal generations of his readers. There were other tales to come, and other publishers to nourish them and profit by their ineffable popularity; but the glory is, and ever will be, Mrs. Beeton's. It was she, or whoever she stood for, who had the courage and the vision t ogive to mankind A Study in Scarlet - and with it Sherlock Holmes.

By the process of a literary mutation with which the botanical world is unfamiliar, this Annual has become a perennial. It stands as the cornerstone of every respectable collection of the first editions of the writings of Dr. John H. Watson. Is is as fresh today as it was on that December day sixty-nine years ago when it was first put forth. Its excessive rarity gives it a worth multiplies its intrinsic worthiness, and its fading pages convey a sense of the time and place in which the Lauriston Gardens mystery occurred that not other pages, however beautifully printed, can possibly provide. It is, for Sherlockians, the book of Genesis.

To publish a Christmas Annual inspired by Mrs. Beeton's is a temerarious undertaking. The cover is in simulation - and there can be no doubt, but the way, as to who the man rising from his chemical table to light his gas-lamp really is - even if the contents are not. But even if there is no new tale of Sherlock Holmes included in the text - along with two "original drawing-room plays" - there is, at least, good talk about the Great Detective and the things he said and did, and the JOURNAL is proud and happy to present its own Annual to a world which is, we hope, prepared for it by the example Mrs. Beeton set.

And so we are left to ask what caused the end to the Christmas Annual after 1960? The answer lies in the black-bordered opening to the 1960 issue announcing the death of Edgar Smith (with an opening sentence lifted from a Holmes story as tribute). The following page opens ATTENTA! and reveals that the 1960 Christmas Annual was compiled from the material prepared by Smith.

1960 Christmas Annual

In Memoriam

Edgar Wadsworth Smith

1 April 1894 - 17 September 1960

It is with an unusually heavy heart that I have to record the loss of hom whom I shall ever regard as the best and wisest man whom I have ever known. As we of the Baker Street Irregulars turn down an empty glass for him, it is not only sad, but it is also extremely difficult to believe that we have stood out on the terrace with him for the last time and have had our last quiet talk with Edgar Smith.

To the world in general Edgar Smith was known as one who had achieved great success in the field of business. Those who were acquainted with him found him also to be a man of profound scholarship. But we, who were fortunate enough to know him well, realize that he was that rare paragon - a perfect gentleman and a real scholar with the gift of evoking sincere friendship.

His activities led him into many fields, and there is nothing he touched that he did not improve. Certainly, there is no one who can take his place. We have lost the truly indispensable man, and we cannot expect ever to look upon his like again within our lifetime.

"Si monumentum quoeris, circumspice"

JW, M.D.

1960 Christmas Annual

ATTENTA! ATTENTA! ATTENTA!

A Notice to the Readers of The Baker Street Journal

THERE WILL ALWAYS BE A JOURNAL!

This issue was prepared by Edgar W. Smith, the only editor the Journal ever had up to the present time. Practically all of the material was selected and typed by him, and was found among his papers.

And so the BSJ did live on, but from 1960 till 1997 the Baker Street Journal Christmas Annual was not produced, till it emerged again as a fine tradition from 1998 onwards.

NOTE: One of the copies above lists a price on the cover. I'm too scared to 'erase' it, but it is certainly NOT the price I'd have paid (or could pay, for that matter) for this set!

Tucked in a book - the Abbey National brick receipt

My favorite thing to post about are small personal connections in books that I find (see for example this post on Gisela Seligmann). 

Today I had a chance to drop by the wonderful Second Story books and spied this innocuous and non-valuable book: The Return of Sherlock Holmes containing HOUN and the Return short stories is facsimile directly from the Strand Magazine. It was published in 1995, the second of three volumes published by  

The first thing I do is look to the fly leaf and title page to see if there's an owners signature, or ex libris note, embossed library mark, address stamp, etc. In this case there were none of these, but it was a cared for book, with a mylar wrapped on the dustjacket.

But tucked in the inside jacket was a small piece of ephemera that could appear meaningless to an innocent book-buyer. It is a small booklet from the Abbey National, a British Building Society ( a form of bank). This bank was headquartered on Baker Street in the address range covering 221, and for many years received and responded to letters addressed to Sherlock Holmes. The pamphlet includes a small section on Baker Street, a card-sized map of the London tube, and a receipt. Let's take a look at the receipt...

The receipt is dated 13 May 1981, and is from the Abbey National Building Society on Baker Street. This is a bank teller receipt, but instead of a bank account number, it states "BRICK" with a price of 2 pounds sterling. Ah if only there was a brick tucked in this book. What brick?

Well earlier this year the 'Curious Collection of Robert Hess' was auctioned (Part 1 anyway), and among the items was the brick shown below. The description states 'A near fine example of this unusual piece of Sherlockiana. In the 1980s, 221b Baker Street was part of the Abbey National Building Society headquarters. When they decided to re-build the offices, several of the better bricks were set aside and sold to collectors in specially designed boxes, with the proceeds going to charity.' 

And so, the owner of this book in Maryland also owned the brick, purchased in London and lugged back in a suitcase to the United States. Certainly a unique piece of memorabilia. I actually tried to buy this brick was beaten by a larger waller on the day! I'll keep looking for a brick.

The nice coincidence is that the very latest Jeremy Brett Sherlock Holmes podcast on the Granada series (http://sherlockpodcast.com) the discuss a very short video created by the Granada team for Abbey National. No explanation exists for why this video was created, but perhaps the Abbey Treasure was a brick....

The Magic Door newsletter and the Edinburgh Editions

I recently became a Friend of the Arthur Conan Doyle Collection at Toronto Public Library (see http://www.acdfriends.org). This group works with the library to promote the collections and fundraise to support and enlarge the collection (there's a nice summary at https://www.arthur-conan-doyle.com/index.php?title=Friends_of_the_Arthur_Conan_Doyle_Collection). 

The Friends send out a newsletter called "The Magic Door" three times a year. It's short (eight pages) with some nice articles highlighting holdings in the collection or new books being released. Along with the general merit of supporting such a cause, the newsletter certainly is worth the price of admission.

In the latest issue (Autumn 2023, Volume 3 Issue 3) there's an article highlighting the relatively new Edinburgh Edition of the Works of Arthur Conan Doyle, published by Edinburgh University Press. A selected volumes of ACD's works are being edited, with introductory essays to each volume, and some other features. Text is standardized by comparison of multiple published editions.

Each hardcover volume is in a handsome mauve (?) dust-jacket with identical illustrations fo ACD against a silhouetted Edinburgh University (where ACD studied). To date, three volumes have been published:

• Memories and Adventures
• Round the Red Lamp
• The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes

These are 'scholarly editions', and in the world of academia the word 'scholarly' is also code for 'very expensive'. In my world of science, authors usually produce content without being paid, resulting in a volume that can cost $200-400. The Edinburgh Editions are not quite so costly, but one could probably purchase a first edition of some of the less-in-demand volumes for the price of an Edinburgh Edition. I state this not to be negative, but to provide context for how these volumes become expensive.

These volumes will likely be largely purchased by academic libraries and very committed Doylean and Sherlockian collectors. I have purchased Memories and Adventures, and hope to be able to continue adding the volumes to my collection. I'm partly optimistic that prices will drop - certainly the first three volumes have been published at consecutively lower prices.

Certainly many books published by ACD will not receive the Edinburgh treatment. While both fiction and non-fiction books are included, the books on spiritualism are not included, which includes ACD's 'travel books' such as 'Wanderings of a Spiritualist'. More information about the series can be found at https://edinburghuniversitypress.com/series-the-edinburgh-edition-of-the-works-of-arthur-conan-doyle/ .

The 44th Annual Enoch Pratt Saturday With Sherlock Holmes, Baltimore MD

Each year since 1980, Sherlockians have gathered in November at the Enoch Pratt Free Library in downtown Baltimore to hear presentations. It was originally called the 'Weekend With Sherlock Holmes' with the first day for Sherlockian presentations and the second day for a Sherlock film screening and discussion. Over time it evolved into 'Saturday with Sherlock Holmes' and that is the current format. 

In 2013, the Baker Street Irregulars published a volume celebrating 'Three Decades of Canonical. The volume contains articles from a number of prominent Sherlockians who had presented at the meeting over the previous thirty years.

And so, this year the Saturday with Sherlock Holmes returned, the 44th such event, produced and hosted by Andy Solberg BSI. As usual it was held in the Wheeler auditorium at the Central Library branch. Each year a theme is introduced as a guiding principle, and this year it was "Mysteries in the Canon".

This is the wonder poster advertising the 2023 Saturday with Sherlock Holmes, and the speaker agenda is shown below. The agenda included Daniel Thomas BSI who has presented at all but one of the 44 meetings held to date! 

Agenda for the meeting. Chair: Andy Solberg, ASH, BSI

Ross Davies, BSI - The Many Waltzes of the Dancing Men
Carla Coupe, ASH, BSI - Who Shot Charles Augustus Milverton
Daniel Thomas, BSI - The Many [sic?] Wives of Doctor Watson
Evelyn Herzog, ASH, BSI - The Original Baker Street Irregulars
Matt Hall - Australian Origins in the Canon
Patrick Ewing - The Adventure of the Persian Slipper
S. Brent Morris - A Consideration of the Disappearance of James Phillimore
Karen Wilson, ASH, BSI - The Education of Sherlock Holmes

The presentations were wonderful, and covered a broad range of topics. Ross Davies examined the fidelity of the dancing men messages shown both in the stories and in the illustrations - with humorous results. This included the passing around of messages and the code for attendees to decode. Carla Coupe presented examined the question of who really show Charles Augustus Milverton, with a number of possibilities examined. Daniel Thomas provided a comprehensive overview of the Sherlockian theories related to the number of wives Watson had.... from one to ten! Evy Herzog dicussed the Original Baker Street Irregulars. I naively thought Evy would discuss the US-based Sherlockian group, but in fact the ORIGINAL Irregulars are those that worked with Sherlock on Baker Street. Patrick Ewing discussed how tobacco could be stored in a Persian slipper, and the different types of slipper that could be referred to. As the photo below shows, props were presented to solve the mystery. Brent Morris gave a talk on freemasonry and the meaning of the phrase in Silver Blaze "There is a wonderful sympathy and freemasonry among horsey men." Finally, Karen Wilson delivered a delightful historiography and analysis of where Holmes studied, and what he studied while in University/College.

I did not mention my talk - my very first Sherlockian presentation. It was an opportunity to discus where ACD may have sourced his Australian influences for the canon.

Ross Davis took photos of some presenters, shown below. The Saturday With Sherlock Holmes is a wonderful opportunity for those interested in Sherlock to enjoy the enthusiasm of fellow Sherlockians, laugh at the puns, and meet a few fellow Sherlockians. Definitely worth considering for the 45th meeting in 2024!

Carla Coupe, ASH, BSI

Daniel Thomas, BSI

Evelyn Herzog, ASH, BSI

Patrick Ewing, with Morocco slide in hand demonstrating how tobacco could be stored.

S. Brent Morris 

And of course, Andy Solberg, ASH, BSI steering proceedings. 

Donald Girard Jewell’s Sherlock Holmes Natural History Series

Thanks to some serendipity, some kindness, and some impulsive purchase decisions I've finally managed to collect the complete set of nine volumes Donald Girard Jewell's Sherlock Holmes Natural History Series. 

This is a delightful set of booklets, each of the nine in the series focused on an aspect of natural history and their appearances in the canon. The books were self-published by the 'Pinchin Lane Press', and each volume has a card wrapper of a different bright color. Each book identifies references to the topic, and provides detailed history and context for the natural features mentioned in the canon.

The preface to each volume states:

"A careful study of the Canon, that collection of sixty cases committed to print, reveals how planst and animals figure prominently in the action and atmosphere of 221B Baker Street. Understanding more about natural history adds new meaning to many of the adventures."

Jewell himself is a naturalist. His 'about the author' section in the books reveal Jewell appears frequently in publications in the United States and Europe. Along with the Sherlockian series, Jewell used Pinchin Lane Press to publish 'A Field Guide to Wild Plants in Winter' and 'A Field Guide to the Underside of Life'. 

Donald G. Jewell’s Sherlock Holmes Natural History Series

• A Trout in the Milk: A Monograph on Fish and Fishing in the Time of Sherlock Holmes, 1991. 300 copies published.
• A Few Hours to the Birds: A Monograph on Birds and Birding in the Time of Sherlock Holmes, 1991. 500 copies published.
• Canonical Cats: A Monograph on Felines in the Time of Sherlock Holmes, 1992. 500 copies published.
• Butterflies & Blind Beetles: A Monograph on Insects and Insect Collecting in the Time of Sherlock Holmes, 1993. 500 copies published.
• A Canonical Dog's Life: A Monograph on Canines in the Time of Sherlock Holmes, 1993. 300 copies published.
• The Botanical Holmes: A Monograph on Plants in the Time of Sherlock Holmes, 1995. 100 copies published. 
• Horses of Different Colors: A Monograph on Horses in the Time of Sherlock Holmes, 1995. 100 copies published. 
• The Herpetological Holmes: A Monograph on Reptiles in the Time of Sherlock Holmes, 1996. 100 copies published. 
• The Meteorological Holmes: A Monograph on Reptiles in the Time of Sherlock Holmes, 1997. 100 copies published. 

In the ninth and final issue, the 'About the Author' section concludes with 'Look for his next book in The Sherlock Holmes Natural History Series, The Geological Holmes. It will deal with geology and its role in the cases of the famous detective.' This tenth volume was not published.

Each copy was signed by the author on the title page prior to sale/shipment.

Uniquely for the series, The Botanical Holmes could be ordered 'hand tinted', apparently with 25 such copies issued. Every black & white figure in these volumes were hand-colored by the author.

Many of my copies include a 'bookmark' of a matching color for that volume, which is a very nice touch.

As for where my copies came from, two contain receipts from when they were purchased by Richard Lakritz MD of San Antonio TX. I don't know if Richard owned the entire set of books, but only two were sold from his estate at the time I found them. Two other books came to me from a very kind Sherlockian James Vogelsang who helped me complete the set.

There is no question these books have had an enduring impact as Sherlockian scholarship. Perhaps this is best exemplified by the fact that over the past few years Burt Wolder and Scott Monty have used this series of books as source material to discuss trifles in the canon on their popular podcast. Three examples can be heard here: 

Trees, Part 1 https://ihose.co/trifles274 

Trees, Part 2 https://ihose.co/trifles276 

Herpetology: https://ihose.co/trifles260 

Surely a fitting tribute over two decades after the series was published, and when things like podcasts didn't even exist! 

My Musgrave Monograph monomania

My favorite scion publications come from the Northern Musgraves. Sadly, the Musgraves wound down 15 years before I discovered Sherlockiana. There were two primary periodicals published by the Northern Musgraves. The first was a regular newsletter called "The Ritual", and the second an 'annual' titled "The Musgrave Papers". Both publications contain absolutely outstanding Sherlockian articles, and issues can easily be purchased on sites such as eBay. 

There were a number of other Northern Musgraves publications, but my favorites are the "Musgrave Monograph" series. I plan for this short post to be the start of a longer article exploring this monographs. As the series title suggests, each publication is a short monograph on a single topic.

In this first post on the topic I'll simply list the monographs in publication order, and their cover image where available on the internet. If I manage to purchase these I'll be able to take photographs of each cover and update this post (quite a few have no photos on Google image search!). Please let me know about errors - I've cobbled the list below together based on searches.

The Musgrave Monograph Series.  Clearly this is currently a draft!

Musgrave Monograph Number One. Pacing The Musgrave Ritual, Carol Whitlam, 1990.

Musgrave Monograph Number Two. Diving down into the cellar : uses of photography in the canon, Matthew Booth, 1991.

Musgrave Monograph Number Three. "Ready when you are, Mr. Rathbone" : a review of the Universal Holmes films, Roger Johnson, 1995.

Musgrave Monograph Number Four. 'I looked in at Mecca ...': an insight into Sherlock Holmes' visit to Mecca, Anne Jordan, 1993.

Musgrave Monograph Number Five. 140 different varieties : a review of tobacco in the Canon, John Hall, 1994.

Musgrave Monograph Number Six. The misadventure of the Sherlock Holmes pilot : an account of the making of the first pilot film for a Sherlock Holmes television series, Richard Lancelyn Green, 1995.

Musgrave Monograph Number Seven. Some knowledge of Baritsu: An investigation of the Japanese system of wrestling used by Sherlock Holmes, Hirayama Yuichi and John Hall, 1996.

Musgrave Monograph Number Eight. Sherlock Holmes, Conan Doyle and the British Empire : an investigation into Conan Doyle's links with the British Empire as expressed through his Sherlockian and other literature, Jeffrey Richards, 1997.

Musgrave Monograph Number ???. Guilty of several monographs : the published writings of Mr. Sherlock Holmes, John Hall, 1996.

Musgrave Monograph Number Nine. 221 BBC : writing for the world's first complete dramatised canon : (with some observations upon previous radio appearances of Mr. Holmes and Dr. Watson), Bert Coules, 1998.

Musgrave Monograph Number Ten. The somnambulist and the detective : Vincent Starrett and Sherlock Holmes, Susan Rice, 2000.

A William Gillette postcard

I recently purchased this postcard of William Gillette on eBay. I knew nothing else about the postcard, but wanted to have a picture of Gillette dressed as Sherlock Holmes, and this image was an extremely common one. In fact, it's the image used on the Wikipedia page for Gillette (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Gillette).

The postcard. The white text at the bottom of the photograph says "William Gillette" at center, and "Rotary Photo Co Ltd...". In handwriting at the bottom right of the postcard is "28/9/03 WJG". That translates to the 28th September 1903, and I should point out that Gillette's middle name was Hooker, and the initials WJG are not William Gillette's.

What I did not expect based on the description was that the reverse side of the postcard is addressed at stamped:

Reverse side of postcard. At left the message reads "Hope you are quite well to-day. W.J.G." and at right it is address to "Madame Sharrah, 55 Spring Bank, Hull". Hull is a city in East Yorkshire. 

The stamp and postmark. Consistent with other information on the postcard, it is stamped "3 PM SP 28 03" and "YORK". 

Well the initials WJG are enigmatic, and all I know is that the postcard was mailed from somewhere in Yorkshire to Hull (in Yorkshire). 

Who was Madame Sharrah? Thanks to the Friends of Hull Cemetery website (friendsofhullgeneralcemetery.com/inspirational-women) I have a little information Madame Sharrah (full name Mary Alice Sharrah) lived from 1863-1940 and was a music, drama and theatre teacher. "For teaching purposes she kept her maiden name of Sharrah, and referred to herself as ‘Madame Sharrah’. As well as music, she also taught drama and elocution, instructing many local talents such as Annie Croft, her son David Croft of Dad’s Army etc, Doris White and many others... lived at their large house at 55 Spring Bank, which still exists".

I'm interested in how common these Gillette postcards were. Gillette began a sold-out 216-performance run at London's Lyceum Theatre in September 1901 (www.gillettecastlefriends.org/a-gillette-timeline) but I can find no evidence that Gillette performed in York in the UK during or prior to 1903. Perhaps the postcard was brought back from London, or perhaps it was available for sale across the UK given Gillette's (and Sherlock's) fame. The postcard appears to be of trifling importance as a message, but was clearly valued enough by Madame Sharrah to be retained, and it survives to this day.

Denny Dobry's open house, 30 Sep 2023

Yesterday (Saturday 30 Sep) I drove up to the Reading PA area to visit Denny Dobry's remarkable open house. Featured was a tour of his 221b Baker Street sitting room recreation, and a Book Fair for the Benefit of the Baker Street Irregulars Trust. Of course, there were many who came along for the open day and it was great to see friends and make some new one. From memory I recall people coming from PA, NJ, MD, VA, NH, RI, DE and TX and there of course many others!

Thank you  so much to Denny and Joann for their kindness and hospitality.

The Baker Street study was truly amazing. The rooms have received plenty of attention in Sherlockian media, so I'll place a couple of links here to start, then give a little description of a few observations.

Dan Andriacco blog interview with Denny:  http://bakerstreetbeat.blogspot.com/2020/01/interviewing-denny-dobry-of-221b.html  

Fourth Garrideb blog post on recreations: https://fourthgarrideb.com/author/denny-dobry/

Article in the Reading Eagle newspaper: https://www.readingeagle.com/2017/02/15/floor-plans-his-love-of-sherlock-holmes-led-to-a-basement-makeover/

This is a stock photo of Denny's 221B Study. Better than any photo I could take with my iPhone.

So with those articles, I can say that Denny's recreation is remarkable. When you head down the stairs (17?) and turn right, you enter another world. One can wander the room, examining items that reflect the way to room is described in the stories, and planted with 'easter egg' evidence items from each of the 60 stories. The photos I've taken tell a better story - I think my favorite features were the books on the shelves (for example the encyclopedia copied out in the 'Red Headed League'), and the windows with a panorama of the street view outside with speakers playing sounds from the street such as the clip-clop of hooves passing by.

I'll start with the introduction that Denny gave on the room, and how it came to be:

Paul Churchill is the Sherlockian in MD that Denny mentions. Paul also created the 'Evidence Boxes' that are held by the 'Watson' Tin Box' scion of Ellicott City MD - I recently posted about Paul and his artifacts here: https://221bcooee.blogspot.com/2023/08/the-evidence-boxes-of-watsons-tin-box.html 

Denny displaying and explaining the air rifle from 'The Empty House'.

The best shot I could take of the entire room. 

Of course I took particular interest in the deal-topped table where chemical experiments take place. The table is conveniently located next to one of the windows looking down on Baker Street, which helps with fumes.

At the other end of the room is Watson's writing desk, with his indexed volumes easily within reach.

A hypodermic needle and syringe, able to administer a 7% solution.....

A magnifying glass atop the writing desk.

A range of items are close at hand on the table near the fireplace, including a pipe, a copy of the Strand, a revolver, and a copy of The Times.

 

The second part of the visit was the Book Fair. A huge area of the basement is arranged for storing and displaying books and other items. These items are donated by people (for example, who are down-sizing their collections) and proceeds of the sale benefits the BSI Trust (www.bsitrust.org). 

This is a stock photo of Denny's 221B Study. Amazingly, this photo does not do the area justice - the back area has a huge book and magazine area.

So what did I buy? Full disclosure, I was going in very fiscally restrained. The event took place on the day the government was going to shut down and i was VERY worried about finances. But I found a few things I was really pleased about.

The Nezire Zanmai International. I've been collecting these for a while now - there are 14 volumes of this journal, and I'm now only missing one issue. After two or three issues, the journal was re-named to The Shoso-In Bulletin. You can learn more about this Japanese Sherlockian publication here: https://shoso.ninja-web.net/Shoso-inBulletin/index.html

ACD - The Journal of the Arthur Conan Doyle Society. I've always wanted to read an issue of this journal, so was glad to find three, so that I can learn more about Doylean scholarship generally.

Irene's Cabinet is the annual Sherlockian publication of Watson's Tin Box of Ellicott City. As a member, I'd hoped to start gathering back-issues at some point. This was a good start, including issues 1, 2 and 3. The really beautiful thing about the first three issues is that almost every article author has signed to Table of Contents, including Paul Churchill (referenced by Denny above).

I really enjoy digging into the early publications of ACD in the Strand Magazine. I have a digital copy of this book from the author Phil Bergem, and was very glad to find a printed copy. Now all I need to do is collect The Strand Magazine itself.... 

William Gillette, America's Sherlock Holmes. I've never been to Gillette Castle, but it's very high on my list. I'm looking forward to reading this book.

So yes, I could have purchased ten times more than I did, but I am really glad to have had the opportunity to visit Denny, Joann and his family, and can't thank the Dobry family enough for their hospitality. There will, I am sure, be Open House events in future years and I'll be there! 

My fascination with Calabash Press

So here's an interesting little goal I've been working towards. I adore the Calabash Press titles, and decided to "catch 'em all", to use a Pokemonian phrase. I also recognized that my NUMBER GOAL of collecting all books published by the Baker Street Irregulars Press was a little naive and may not ever be achievable (more on how that is going in a future post).

The first Calabash books that really caught my attention were the 'Case Files of Sherlock Holmes' series - four of which were published, each with a collection of essays on a Sherlock story. I am also an avid follower of David Stuart Davies' work, and after reading 'The Tangled Skein' I made the connection that these wonderful books were being published by the same place (though am embarrassed to say I'm not into vampire stories).

As I looked into other Calabash titles, I found it difficult to find more information. Based on the books published, Calabash published from around 1996-2004, were "Publishers of fine books on matters related to Sherlock Holmes and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle", and it was run by Christopher & Barbara Roden. I worked through library catalogs such as Toronto and Minnesota to build a list of all published titles, and expanded that (though not shown here) to attempt to identify which were published in hardcover, which in softcover, and which in both.

Sourcing the books in the list has of course not been straightforward. Some could be purchased immediately, but at great cost, but I've been searching patiently for reasonable prices, and am close to having a complete set. I did buy one book at a high price (well, for me it was high!) - believing I'd never see it again - and of course the lesson was that someone else was selling a much cheaper copy a week later.

I should add that my collection is not complete! There are still two titles that I'm twiddling my thumbs waiting to purchase when an addordable copy is available, and being the completist that I am doomed to be, there are publications where I do not yet have both the HC and SC copies. But I'm certainly almost there!

(I'll edit/replace this photo as the other books are added in. One or two I are shelved elsewhere. It breaks my mind that the 'Canadian Holmes' volume does not have the cursive 'Calabash Press' logo at the bottom of the spine.)

Below is a list of titles I've identified, and I'd appreciate any suggestions relating to errors. I've divided the list for convenience into Sherlockian titles, and Pastiche titles. I have to confess to having little patience for pastiches (though there are a few exceptions to that rule), but nevertheless I'm gathering all of them.

Calabash Press - the Sherlockian titles

The Case Files of Sherlock Holmes: The Musgrave Ritual, Roden, Christopher & Barbara, 1996

The Great Shadow: Arthur Conan Doyle, Brigadier Gerard, and Napoleon, Clifford S. Goldfarb, 1997 

Canonical quizzes from the bootbox : twenty-five years of puzzles from the Bootmakers of Toronto, Gibson, Brian Neil. ; Roden, Barbara. ; Sanders, David. ; Wrigglesworth, Doug., 1997 

The Baker Street File, Cox, Michael, 1997 (and a 2002 reprint)

The Case Files of Sherlock Holmes: The Speckled Band, Roden, Christopher & Barbara, 1997

Sidelights on Holmes, Hall, John, 1998 Sidelights on Holmes, Hall, John, 1998 

The Case Files of Sherlock Holmes: The Dying Detective, Roden, Christopher & Barbara, 1998

The Canonical Compendium, Clarkson, Stephen, 1999

The Case Files of Sherlock Holmes: The Blue Carbuncle, Roden, Christopher & Barbara, 1999

Hot on the scent : a visitor's guide to the London of Sherlock Holmes, Alexander, Arthur M., 1999 

The Transcendent Holmes, Montgomery, John Warwick., 2000

Out of the shadows : the untold story of Arthur Conan Doyle's first family, Doyle, Georgina, 2004Out of the shadows : the untold story of Arthur Conan Doyle's first family, Doyle, Georgina, 2004

Violets & Vitriol: Essays About Sherlock Holmes and Conan Doyle, S. E. Dahlinger, 2004 Violets & Vitriol: Essays About Sherlock Holmes and Conan Doyle, S. E. Dahlinger, 2004 

'I am inclined to think...' : musings on Sherlock Holmes and Arthur Conan Doyle, Roden, Barbara., 2004

Calabash Press - the Pastiche titles

Absolute discretion, Eustace, Grant, 1997

Chronicles of Sherlock Holmes, Smith, Denis O., 1997

Chronicles of Sherlock Holmes - Volume 2, Smith, Denis O., 1998

The scroll of the dead : a Sherlock Holmes adventure, David Stuart Davies, 1998 

The tangled skein, David Stuart Davies, 1998 

The abominable wife and other unrecorded cases of Mr. Sherlock Holmes,  Hall, John, 1998 

As it might have been : a collection of Sherlockian parodies from unlikely sources, Adey, Robert., 1998 

The shadow of the rat : a Sherlock Holmes adventure, David Stuart Davies, 1999 

Chronicles of Sherlock Holmes - Volume three, 1999

A notable interlude, Capes, Bernard, 1999

Sherlock Holmes-- the last act!, David Stuart Davies, 1999

Knight errant : the singular adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Rubino, Jane, 2000 

The irregular casebook of Sherlock Holmes, Weighell, Ron., 2000 

A Julian Symons Sherlockian duet, Symons, Julian, 2000 

Chronicles of Sherlock Holmes - Volume four, Smith, Denis O., 2002

The questionable parentage of Basil Grant, Broster, D. K, 2004