While the majority of Norwegian-American publishing consists of modestly bound books, books with plainly decorated board covers, and pamphlets, some of the major publishers produced an impressive number of decorated cloth-bound books in the American tradition of nineteenth century publishers' bindings, utilizing current American machinery and bookbinding practices. While some also looked to Europe and Scandinavia for inspiration, the major Norwegian-American publishers gradually developed their own individual "style" and ethnic characteristics in their binding facilities. Decorated cloth bindings (also called publishers' bindings) had been primarily developed for books published in large quantities, as a less expensive alternative to leather bindings. The decorative stampings and fancy lettering on the book covers were used not only for aesthetic purposes, but also as a marketing device, an advertisement for the book. These particular book covers, as may be easily seen, were created specifically for the Norwegian/Scandinavian immigrant market. For more information on publishers' bindings in general, see Publishers' Bindings Online.
When placed on a shelf
next to Anglo-American nineteenth and early twentieth century bindings,
the bindings of Norwegian-American imprints stand out due to their distinctly
ethnic look. Not only did Norwegian-American binderies continue using
black letter type for author and title on cover and spine-a type that
had been discontinued in Northern Europe and the United States by the
mid-19th century-but they were also using decorative borders and stamps
inspired by motifs and symbols right from their Viking and Old Norse past,
following the example of Norway, which for a short period was swept by
a movement of fervent national romanticism. Around the turn of the century,
some Norwegian-American book bindings began to reflect the influence of
Northern European decorative arts movements such as Jugendstil and Art
Nouveau, styles that did not generally take hold in contemporary Anglo-American
bindings, while others reflected the renewed interest among certain factions
in preserving their Norwegian heritage and language.
This visual guide to the St. Olaf College Library's Norwegian-American imprint collection may also serve as a visual celebration of the history of the Norwegians in America: a deeply religious people, demanding of their children to be literate enough to be able to read their beloved catechism; hard working as lumberjacks, as farmers, and as skilled laborers; and finally also as professionals and well-to-do city dwellers. Through their book covers they tell us how they perceived themselves and how they wanted others to see them.
The Images are subdivided into the three major categories of Norwegian-American publishing: Religious writings (devotional literature, excluding bibles, hymnals, etc.; religious tracts on various controversial topics; books by and about missionaries); Nonfiction (including history books, guide books, legal form books, etc.); and Literature (fiction, belles lettres, poetry, and the literary writings by Norwegian-American authors). Within these three categories, they are pictured in chronological order by publication date. We can observe a distinct progression in cover design along the lines of development seen on contemporary "Anglo-American" publishers's bindings.
For more information on this topic see: Nevin, Susanne, "Norwegian-American Decorated Cloth: A Subset of American Publishers' Bindings, 1860-1930," in: Norwegian-American Essays 2004 (NAHA-Norge, 2005).
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