1908 Anomoly:

[Melvin L. De Vilbiss]

Preface:

To the best of my ability I believe the NGS changed its indexing process after 1907.

 

As yet nobody has been able to provide any other explanation. I would appreciate any thoughts otherwise.

 

Up to 1907, the NGS published an index within each volume as an integral portion of one of the volumes’ issues, usually within the last issue of the volume, particularly beginning with 1896 - the first year with 12 monthly issues.

 

A Table of Contents (TOC) along with Illustrations was included as a preface to the entire volume and numbered with Roman Numerals (to be removed from the last issue and placed at the beginning of the “bound” volume). The index usually continued the sequential page numbers from the last page of the last issue in Arabic Numerals (and was usually left at the end of the bound volume).

 

In 1908 things “began” to change!

 

The December 1908 issue included a TOC and “List of” Illustrations with no index. I have found no “index” in any original (no reprints for this year are known) December 1908 issue.

 

The December 1909 issue included a TOC and “Index of to” Illustrations with no index. Again, I have found no “index” in any original (no reprints for this year are known) December 1909 issue.

 

Beginning with 1910, the NGS no longer published a TOC, Illustrations (list of or index of), nor Index integral with any of its issues. Rather, they published a separate pamphlet style annual Index that included all of these items.

 

In 1914, the NGS divided each year into two volumes AND created a two-volume INDEX pamphlet with each half-year issue usually being produced within six months (at least for the early years) of the last issue published from the volume.

 

I have been told that the NGS issued these indexes (at least in the early teens) primarily to bookbinderies and did not generally make them available to the public. I can believe this due to the difficulty in trying to obtain any 1910 through Jan-Jun 1914 (first ½ year index).

 

Beginning with the Jul-Dec 1914 Index the cover is of the familiar Oak leaf design and is more available on the market making me believe that perhaps this and subsequent issues of the index were offered to the public.

 

Now the 1908 anomaly!

 

I have a bound 1908 volume complete with covers and ads, the TOC and List of Illustrations, as well as an original December 1908 magazine with same.

 

On page III of the TOC (both versions), the last entry in the

 

magazine is “National Geographic Society … pg 888”

 

bound volume is “Index…pg 889”

 

The Index, of course, does not exist!

 

And, what exists as the last entry in the magazine TOC page III, i.e. page 888, is in-fact the second to last entry in the bound volume TOC page III.

 

I have a second bound 1908 volume that has the “magazine” TOC, i.e. ends with page 888. This set is without ads and covers and appears to be assembled in three books directly from magazines.

 

I believe the bound volume TOC that ends with page 889 may actually be one that the NGS “issued” to binderies and not one published as an integral part of the December issue.

 

Question:

 

Has any else discovered this anomaly in “any” magazine or bound issue?

 

[Scott T. Shier]

Mel,


According to Roger Nathan's 1982 book, "Collectibles of the National Geographic Society", page 106, last paragraph:


"In the early years of publication of National Geographic Magazine, an index for each volume was usually included as a part of the last issue of each volume. Exceptions occurred for Volumes I and II: the index for those two volumes appeared in Volume II, Number 5. Exceptions also occurred for the Volumes issued in 1900 and 1905; paper supplements were issued for those years.

Beginning in 1910, a twelve-month paper index was issued annually. The first of the six-month indexes was issued for January-June 1914 when two volumes were issued per year."

I am not sure this helps anything, but it is the only thing I could reply with.


- Scott S.

[Melvin L. De Vilbiss]

Scott,

This was my understanding also, which really causes me reason to pause when you consider I have an index, unlike any other I've seen. How did that happen?

The TOC with the last entry on page III reading: "Index.....pg. 889" is simply perplexing when you consider that for 1908, ALL indexes (including TOC's and List of Illustrations) were "supposedly" published as an integral part of the December issue AND every other TOC I've seen has the last entry (which is 2nd to last in the anomaly) as "National Geographic Society...pg 888."

My guess, and that's all it is, is that an early production run of the December issue was made when the NGS was anticipating producing an INDEX as it had up to and including 1907. Then, in midstream, after some December issues had been printed, the NGS decided it would no longer publish a "formal index" that would have been the last referenced page in the Table of Contents. It did not, in-fact, produce an index, to the best of my knowledge, in either 1908 or 1909, at least not one as an integral part of the December issue.

Minor correction in my intial discussion:
The "Index of" should read "Index to" Illustrations for the 1909 Table of Contents.

Thank you for your feedback!

Mel

[George Thomas Wilson]

Hi Mel,

I know this was an old post of yours but I just read it.  Hope the move is going OK.  If I read you correctly, there are indexes for 1910 through 1914 (2 half years for 1914).

I have, what appear to be, loose addendums for all six.  There covers are the same as Page i of the Dec. 1908 issue and reminiscent of the 1901 magazine covers.  This includes both 1914 addendums, no Oak leaf.

All six have TOC, but no illustration index nor article index.  My guess is these are in lieu of indexes and not in addition to them.

Tom

 

[Melvin L. De Vilbiss]

You are correct in your guessing.

First, the oak leaf border did not appear on the annual Indexes until 1917.

Second, from 1910 through 1917, the NGS published two separate Title page versions.

One version had only the Title page with Contents listing - this was published 1910 through 1917.

The second version was what we would come to know as the "annual index publication" in that it contained the Title Page, Contents Listing, Illustration(s) Listing (all for placement in the front of a bound book with lower case Roman numerals) as well as an Index listing (with Arabic numerals) that continued the page number sequence after the last article page of the December issue. I do have copies of all of these for my loose collection - but they were very difficult to find and were rather costly (as little paper pamphlets go).

I have not been able to locate enough, however, to complete my bound collection (still missing two).