The collection of Lakeside Classics are the longest, continuously running series
of Americana. Every year since 1903 their publisher, The Lakeside Press
an imprint of R. R. Donnelley & Son, has produced these carefully bound books
as Christmas gifts to their employees, stockholders, vendors and business associates.
The books in the series have never been sold by R. R. Donnelley, so their
sale only occurs when the books have entered the secondary market.
Until recently the aim had been to reproduce a book which has been long out
of print, extremely uncommon and only known to historians of the early West.
Additionally, the book had to cover a subject matter which provides the
reader with an accurate, first person narrative of events, times or places of
the pioneering period of the U.S. All of the books in the series have
been produced in a 16mo format with a uniform depth. With only a few
exceptions, the volumes are roughly the same width as the publisher changed
the weight of the paper employed to make appropriate adjustments.
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Every twenty-five years the color of the binding has changed. From 1903
to 1927 the publisher used a dark green cloth to cover the boards (now often
referred to as the "greenies".) From 1928 to 1952 there was a red cloth
covering; from 1953 to 1977 a dark blue cloth was employed; from 1978 to 2002 a
dark brown cloth was employed. In December of 2003 the publishers again changed
the cloth binding to a blue turqoise color to mark the 101st year of Lakeside Classics.
All have gilt text stamping on the spine and the front boards have always shown
the then current seal for the Lakeside Press.
Reliable sources have informed us that The Lakeside Press produced approximately
1,000 copies of the 1903 edition. However, for the years 1904 through
1910 the number of printings was reduced to approximately 600 copies for each
year. Reprints of only the first five books in the series were produced
for sale under the Reilly & Britton Company imprint. They were printed
and bound in the same format by The Lakeside Press but released under the general
heading of the Patriotic Classics.
Copyright © 2001, Town's End Books, All Rights Reserved.
If you wish to see a complete list of the titles in the series as published
by R. R. Donnelley & Son please click on this highlighted link then use your
browser's "BACK" button to return to this page. Lakeside
Classics Titles