Listing is for the autograph book of Anna/Annie Pegar/Peggar from Sioux City, IA. The book appears to have been gifted to her by Lena E. Moy in April, 1885.
The book is 7" long by 4.25" high. The cover is coated with a paper-thin layer of glossy maroon material with an embossed crosshatch pattern. The front cover is decorated with gold embossed art that includes birds, vines, and vintage graphics/lettering. The back cover has an embossed image with an array of leaves. The page edges are gilded in gold. The book maker is unknown.
The book contains 27 entries from friends and relatives between 1885 and 1911. There are random blank pages between entries, so the book is not full. Autographs were acquired randomly, meaning entries do not appear chronologically in the book.
All signatures include a handwritten, personal note. Some of the penmanship is stunningly beautiful. The book also contains 39 embossed, die-cut stickers on random pages that appear to be placed by hand (by Annie) rather than being original to the book because entries are written around them. The stickers include flowers, little girls, and messages of love and hope. None of the stickers are loose as of this moment. Two of the stickers are silver foil labels used to mark rolls of fabric. Both are embossed and die-cut with fine details. One includes an American Indian bow hunting with a canine (see photo in gallery), and the other is an elaborate crest with bundles of wheat on a shield, ship wheels, flowers, and a decorative paisley-like framework tying them all together.
The book was signed by brother Victor Pegar and brother Jos. Peggar. I do not have access to ancestry tools to learn Annie's story and I have not been able to find any signatures of historic relevance. The inside cover has been signed by L.V. Garcia, 1985.
Condition:
The book is 139 years old. It's charming with it's worn cover and age-stained pages (and personal contents), but the binding is very loose. At least three pages have detached and many are ready to fall out with too much use. The pages are sewn into the joint, but the paper is fragile and getting worse.