Modern American Children’s Books: Volland Books

The Illustrated Children’s Literature Collection at Adelphi includes almost two dozen Volland books. While some are a century old, they have a contemporary look that remains enticing to young readers.

Buddy Jim by Elizabeth Gordon;
illustrated by John Rae (1922)

In 1908, Paul Frederick Volland (1874-1919) founded the Volland Publishing Company in Chicago, Illinois.  The company began by producing greeting cards and calendars but eventually became widely known as a book publisher of high quality, modern children’s books. Titles were often produced in series, with such delightful names as Sunny Book, Happy Children Book, Fairy Children Book and Nature Children Book.

Bib Ballads by Ring Lardner;
illustrated by Fontaine Fox (1915)

An early example, published in 1915, was a collection of poems by the well-known sports journalist Ring Lardner (1885-1933). His Bib Ballads was illustrated by Fontaine Fox (1884-1964), creator of the popular Toonerville Folks comic strip.

Johnny Gruelle (1880-1938) was the most famous of Volland’s authors/illustrators and his Raggedy Ann Stories and sequels brought success to Volland until the company’s demise during the Great Depression. Originally handmade, Raggedy Ann dolls were manufactured by Volland to coordinate with the stories.

The Gigglequicks by Miram Clark Potter;
illustrated by Tony Sarg (1918)

Tony Sarg (1880-1942), illustrator of The Gigglequicks, was also a master puppeteer and creator of the first hot air parade balloons for Macy’s. Katharine Sturges Dodge (1890-1979) illustrated Tales of Little Dogs and was the mother of Hilary Knight, the illustrator of the Eloise books. M. T. “Penny” Ross (1881-1937) created adorable Flower Children pictures and was also a cartoonist who worked with Walt Disney. John Rae (1882-1963), who studied with the artist Howard Pyle (1853-1911), produced soft, impressionist illustrations for Elizabeth Gordon’s Buddy Jim. Janet Laura Scott (1888-1968) created pictures for Gordon’s Wild Flower Children and was also known as an illustrator of the popular Bobbsey Twins book series.

Originally, many Volland books were sold in illustrated cardboard gift boxes. A wonderful variety of stories and pictures awaited each child as the lid was opened. 

--By Elayne Gardstein