Catalogue Entry

E. W. Bouvé (1817–97) was a Boston-born lithographer and engraver active from 1839 until his death. He opened his first shop at 1 Graphic Court, Boston (misspelled "Gaphic" on at least one print) and then moved on to a partnership with William Sharp at 221 Washington Street. After his short stint with Sharp, he remained in the Washington Street building until 1848 as a solo artist. He served a short term on the City of Roxbury Common Council from 1849-51 before establishing a card engraving business and continued in that profession until his death. Bouvé is known to have produced sheet music covers, book illustrations, portraits, buildings, town views, certificates, charts, and plans.

This information has been summarized from Boston Lithography 1825–1880 by Sally Pierce and Catharina Slautterback.

Oakes & Swan were sheet music engravers and publishers, with a shop located on Tremont Row in Boston, Massachusetts. This was only a brief partnership (c.1840) of William H. Oakes and Samuel Swan. Oakes, however, went on to publish sheet music under his own name from 1840 to 1851.

– Catharina Slautterback

One of the first uses of lithography, after its invention in France in the late eighteenth century and its development in America, was for sheet music covers. The music itself was printed from engraved copper plates, which was necessary for the clarity and evenness demanded by the public for the music. However, lithography provided a quick and inexpensive way to provide enticing pictorial title pages, or covers, for sheet music. Pendleton's shop produced the first lithographic sheet music cover printed in the United States in 1826. Much of Lane's work at Pendleton's involved sheet music covers, and examples here by other artists show some of the conventions around the designs.

This information has been summarized from Boston Lithography 1825–1880 by Sally Pierce and Catharina Slautterback.