I wrote to the New Haven Museum in Connecticut to see if they had any catalogs or magazines concerning the A.B. Hendryx Co. I received an affirmative answer so I paid to have copies. I received a box tonight.
I opened the box and pulled out about 50-60 or more pages of pictures, diagrams, measurements, specifications, etc of his cages/stands/feeders/springs/hanging hooks/and whatever else. It contains the information I have been searching for concerning which feeder goes with which cage. It has the most interesting shapes of cages!! OH, how I love the Victorian age cages!!! There is a review of the different finishes available, including brass and the Japanned finishes. It offers the option of having a pull-out drawer for cleaning, or not having one. It offers removable seed guards and feeder cup guards.
I just paged through the catalog copies once. I found I was holding my breath and treating each page as if it was an original. What an opportunity to have all this information. I still can't believe it.
Along with the cages, the Hendryx company offered a pamphlet called the 'Feathered Philosopher' which told of a wise bird in a family who helps solve a crisis as well as instruct the family on canary care and best housing for this said canary. Hendryx of course. I received a copy of two of these pamphlets. They are very cute. I own one pamphlet with the same name, but with another saga and it's double the amount of pages of the ones I just received. It would have been quite a gift to accompany the cage purchases back in the day.
I don't know what I will do with them. I will certainly protect the pages but am not sure if I will have them bound or not. Must ponder that. But for now, I have a box full of informational history that puts me many steps forward toward my goal.
I needed to share this with you. It is a wonderful addition to this hoarder's library of information and memorabilia concerning the Andrew B. Hendryx Co. I will see if I can figure out how to add a picture of the cover so you can see what it looks like.
Thanks for joining in.
Barbara
