The Horn Papers; Early Westward Movement on the Monongahela and Upper Ohio, 1765-1795 - 3 vols.
Waynesburg and New York: The Greene County Historical Society; The Hagstrom Company, 1945. First Printing. Hardcover. 3 volumes, two volume text volumes, 8vo (9 x 6.5 inches), black cloth, very good, light foxing to endpapers, a handful of tiny white spots to boards, plus folio atlas volume (17 x 12.5 inches) which is very good, previous owner's rather large inscription on flyleaf attesting to buying this at the Greene County Historical Society in 1969 for $30, light wear to binding, lettering on front cover a little rubbed off. Rare in the trade. Here's a fairly lengthy description of the set from the Library of Congress's website: "The Horn Papers are a three-volume set of books published by the Greene County, Pennsylvania Historical Society (GCHS) in 1945. The first two of these three volumes were promptly discredited by historical scholars as forgeries. However, ongoing access to the books—in some cases without any accompanying context of the hoax—continues to spread misinformation nearly three-quarters of a century after the scandal was exposed. William Franklin Horn [1870-1956], of Topeka, Kansas, initiated The Horn Papers by submitting newspaper columns, between 1933 and 1936, to the Washington Observer and Democrat Messenger newspapers in Washington and Greene Counties, Pennsylvania, respectively. He claimed that the content he provided was from historical documents purported to be among his family papers. Horn alleged that these records included two diaries kept by his ancestors between 1735 and 1795, as well as a court docket dated 1772-1779, and other assorted court orders, maps, and miscellaneous items. If true, the broad impact of such early information would have advanced, and in some cases challenged, the extant history for the region, particularly in southwestern Pennsylvania and nearby areas of northwestern West Virginia and Maryland. Horn’s newspaper articles elevated him to local celebrity. He lectured, advised, gave tours, assisted genealogists, and donated pieces from his collection throughout the region. After a struggle to find a publisher willing to print Horn’s unsubstantiated claims, the Greene County Historical Society raised $20,000.00 to fund the project. Within months of the December 1945 release of The Horn Papers criticism from historical scholars prompted the Institute of Early American History & Culture, an independent research organization sponsored by the College of William & Mary, to launch an investigation. Scientific dating and evaluation were applied to items of metal, glass, ink, and paper in Horn's collection. Intense analysis of history and language enabled the identification and assessment of inconsistencies, conflicts, and anachronisms in Horn's text. The committee concluded that 'In view of the fact that intensive investigation failed to discover a shred of evidence to substantiate the authenticity of the documents and on the contrary, found convincing evidence of their spuriousness, it is our opinion that the primary material in The Horn Papers is a fabrication and therefore that historians and genealogists ought not to rely on any data in Volumes I and II. Volume III, on the other hand, containing warrant, survey and patent maps prepared by the Pennsylvania Land Office, is valuable.' It could not be determined if Horn himself had forged the documents or if he had replicated forgeries that he discovered and believed to be genuine." Very good. Item #H37896
Price: $450.00 save 33% $301.50