Miniature Book News, Number 92, March 1997 Page: 4
8 p. : ill. ; 22 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Achille J. St. Onge
Achille J. St. Onge, recognized during his lifetime as the "dean of
American miniature book publishing,"' published as a labor of love, and
not as a means of making money. St. Onge worked locally for many years
at a forge company, then at an envelope company; and he worked on his
specialty publications as a hobby at home. The production of limited
editions established the maximum potential sale of his tiny books.2 If he
broke even on the sale, he felt repaid for the effort expended.
One must marvel at the infinite labor and attention to details which St.
Onge gave his tiny tomes. He selected the work to be published, poured
over the type selection, chose the cover layouts, and decided the color and
style of the binding. All of the miniatures, which range in size from I "/2 x
2" to the "largest" size of 24" x 3", are printed on handwoven rag paper.
The books are edged in gold with decorative end papers and are bound in
genuine leather.
He chose subjects for his books on the basis of "finding something that
people like."3 One of St. Onge's publications was the issuing of a hitherto
unpublished poem of Swinburne's entitled "Shelley." He published the
inaugural addresses of six presidents: Thomas Jefferson, Franklin
Delano Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B.
Johnson, and Richard M. Nixon. He also published essays by Ralph
Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Thomas Gray, and Eugene
O'Neill, and historical favorites such as The Magna Carta, The Mal flower
Compact, Paul Revere s Ride, and The Declaration of Independence.
Two St. Onge editions have taken adventuresome trips. Robert
Kennedy carried a copy of John F. Kennedy's Inaugural Address to the
top of Mt. Kennedy in Canada in 1964, and Astronaut "Buzz" Aldrin
carried a copy of 77he A utobiography of Robert H. Goddard to the moon
and back on Apollo 11.5
Achille St. Onge became a publisher somewhat by accident. As a
student at North High School, he began by publishing "The Worcesterian."
Robert K. Shaw, a former librarian for the Worcester Public Library,
wrote an article on miniature books for "The Worcesterian." This article
came to the attention of a prominent Boston realtor, James D.
Henderson, a collector of miniature books. At the urging of Henderson,
St. Onge published his first "little book," a collection of Christmas
quotations by Shaw. The book Noelwas issued in a limited edition of 278
copies6 and sold for one dollar in a local department store. The first day
over 100 copies were sold.
St. Onge's reputation for perfection in publishing received recognition
from such famous collectors as Percy Spielmann of England and
Clarence S. Brigham of the American Antiquarian Society. He was also
honored in 1946 by the American Institute of Graphic Arts when The
Inaugural Address of Franklin Delano Roosevelt was selected as one of
the year's best produced books. In addition, St. Onge's miniatures
brought him to the attention of such personages as Winston Churchill,4
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Edison, Julian I. Miniature Book News, Number 92, March 1997, periodical, March 1997; St. Louis, Missouri. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc9406/m1/4/: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Special Collections.