Additions to the John Johnson Collection

Introduction

Additions have been made to the John Johnson Collection since its accession in 1968.

Individual items

Individual items of pre-1960 ephemera have been added to the original boxes. This practice has been discontinued and the backlog of pre-1960 ephemera will form the basis of a supplementary sequence of boxes with headings the same as Johnson’s own. This work will begin in September 2022 and indexes will be posted in due course.

Named collections

Whole collections of both pre- and post-1960 ephemera have been acquired and have been added to the John Johnson Collection as named collections.

 

  • Ballam Collection of Games and Pastimes: alphabetical and chronological indexes
  • Barna (postcards)
  • Bridgnorth (jobbing printing)
  • Brister (various)
  • Bulkely (protest): index
  • Burnett (playing cards): index
  • Chatham House (WWII): index
  • Chew (greetings cards)
  • Connor (Christmas and greetings cards): index
  • Coupland (photography, cameras and film processing): index
  • Cox (Christmas cards and misc.): from Sir Christopher Cox’s papers via Caroline Dalton, 1983
  • Dew (prints, postcards & misc.): index
  • Dickinson Robinson (packaging)
  • Douce (playing cards): index
  • Dummett (games): index
  • Dunstan (albums and various)
  • Edmonds (compliments slips): index
  • Fitzgerald (Americana, Christmas cards, misc): index
  • James Fraser (protest)
  • John Fraser (propaganda postcards): index
  • Garnett (Electrical, Garden, etc): index
  • Gatliff Trust (various): index
  • Golightly (perfume): index
  • Hague Moseley (advertising material, perfumes)
  • Harding (bookplates, miniature theatre, postcards, valentines)
  • Hirsch (protest): index
  • K Jones (protest): index
  • Lawrence, TE (ephemera relating to): index
  • Lillington (cigarette cards)
  • Long (topographical postcards): index
  • Mary Gardiner (Happy Families and other card games): index
  • Minn (topographical prints)
  • Modern Publicity (design): index
  • Mukherjee (design)
  • Nottingham Park Estate (trade catalogues): index
  • OUP General (printing)
  • OUP Layout (printing), donated 1984
  • Partridge (pictorial art): index
  • Pateman (protest): index
  • Peter Norris (postcards)
  • Peter Snow (French postcards): index
  • Pollard (Communism)
  • Publishers’ Catalogues: index
  • K Robertson (serviettes): index
  • Rosenthal (postcards)
  • Royal Printing Archive (royal): index
  • San Garde (postcards, Christmas cards)
  • Sayers (ocean liner ephemera): index
  • Sparrow (Oxford University)
  • Tomlinson (book binding cloth samples): index
  • Waddington (postcards, Christmas cards): index
  • Marina Warner (fine art)
  • Roger Warner (artefacts, printed fabrics)
  • Donald Welsh (playing cards): index
  • RB Wilson (railways, Martlett Press, misc.): index
  • Ron Wilson (misc)

Modern ephemera

Post-1960 ephemera have been collected, and since the 1980s, sorted into categories loosely based on Johnson’s own. Most modern ephemera are unindexed, but their minimal level records include an indication of the years covered in each box. This listing gives the headings (sometimes with variant headings) under which modern ephemera can be found in SOLO.

This list by subject facilitates cross-searching with the headings of the original John Johnson Collection.

Named collections and modern ephemera: a combined listing by subject

Named collections

  • Garnett (electrical): index
  • Golightly (perfume): index
  • Hague Moseley
  • Lennox-Boyd (index in preparation): Includes trade cards, bill headings and a substantial collection of ephemera relating to Hotels. Learn more about this collection.
  • Modern Publicity: index
  • Nottingham Park Estate Trade Catalogues: index

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

These headings are mostly not indexed.

  • Antiques / Commercial Antiques
  • Auctions
  • Catalogues
  • Christmas catalogues
  • Commercial general / Commercial miscellaneous
  • Craft
  • Fashion and Cosmetics
  • Finance and Insurance
  • Food and Soft Drinks (includes Menus)
  • Fortnum & Mason
  • Horticulture
  • Household and DIY
  • Laura Ashley
  • Marks & Spencer
  • Office Supplies
  • Photography
  • Property
  • Sound
  • Technology
  • Wines, Spirits, Tobacco

For more information about our holdings of modern (post-1960) ephemera, see Modern ephemera categories explained.

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

These headings are not indexed.

  • Building Control (copyright receipts)

 

Named collections

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

  • Badges: index
  • Blank Stationery
  • Board Games
  • Card Games
  • Jigsaws
  • Toys

For more information about our holdings of modern (post-1960) ephemera, see Modern ephemera categories explained.

Named collections

  • Trilokesh Mukherjee (design). Five boxes of catalogues, bookjackets and ephemera designed by Trilokesh Mukherjee, 1960s – 1980s (donated by TM in 2018)
  • Marina Warner (various donations of private view cards, etc). For additional donations not kept together as a named collection, search Bodleian catalogue for ‘ex don Marina Warner’

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

These headings are not indexed.

  • Fine Art

For more information about our holdings of modern (post-1960) ephemera, see Modern ephemera categories explained.

 

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

These headings are not indexed.

  • Literary

For more information about our holdings of modern (post-1960) ephemera, see Modern ephemera categories explained.

 

 

  • Publishers' Catalogues: index

Named collections

  • Partridge
  • Tomlinson Book Cloth Samples: index

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

  • Bookjackets; minimal level records on SOLO. Search syntax (example) ICPbookjacket: Bodleian_English language small_2014_Sep_1
  • Bookselling, Bookclubs
  • Booktrade General
  • Inserts
  • Libraries
  • Oxford Booktrade
  • Publishing (excluding catalogues)
  • Sample issues
  • Publishers’ Catalogues
  • Slipcases

For more information about our holdings of modern (post-1960) ephemera, see Modern ephemera categories explained.

Modern (1960) ephemera headings

These headings are not indexed.

  • Careers Booklets
  • Education General
  • Employment & Educational General
  • School Magazines
  • School Prospectuses

For more information about our holdings of modern (post-1960) ephemera, see Modern ephemera categories explained.

Named collections

  • Harding (miniature theatre prints): index

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

These headings are not indexed.

  • Art Galleries and Museums
  • Entertainment General / Entertainment Misc.
  • Fairs & Festivals
  • Cinema, Television and Video
  • National Trust
  • London Theatre
  • Oxford Theatre
  • Provincial Theatre
  • Royal Shakespeare Company (all venues)
  • Theatre Misc.
  • What’s on and Tourism

For more information about our holdings of modern (post-1960) ephemera, see Modern ephemera categories explained.

Named collections

  • Chew (greetings cards)
  • Connor (Christmas cards): index
  • Cox (Christmas cards and general)
  • Dickinson Robinson (packaging), 1977
  • Double Crown Club (menus and invitations)
  • Edmonds Collection of Compliments Slips: index
  • Fitzgerald Collection (Christmas cards etc): index
  • Harding (bookplates, valentines): index
  • Lennox-Boyd (trade cards, bill headings, tickets, prints, etc.): for other ephemera in the collection relating to this theme see Major new named ephemera collections
  • Lillington (cigarette cards)
  • Kay Robertson (serviettes): index
  • Waddington (postcards and greetings cards): index
  • Warner, Roger (artefacts, printed fabrics)
  • Wynkyn de Worde
Postcards
Named collections
  • John Fraser (propaganda and topographical postcards): index
  • Harding postcards: index
  • Long (topographical postcards): index
  • Peter Norris
  • Peter Snow: French postcards: index
  • Rosenthal
  • San Garde

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

  • Badges: index
  • Blank Stationery
  • Bodley’s Librarians cards
  • Calendars, Large
  • Calendars, Small
  • Christmas Cards
  • Compliments Slips
  • Formal General
  • Gallery Five
  • Greetings Cards
  • Packaging (1960s – 1980s: no longer collected)
  • Paper Bags
  • Plastic Bags
  • Postcards
  • Posters

For more information about our holdings of modern (post-1960) ephemera, see Modern ephemera categories explained.

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

  • COVID-19 pandemic: index

These headings are not indexed.

  • Health General (cuts across all categories)

Named collections

  • Minn (Oxford prints)

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

These headings are not indexed.

  • Oxford Booktrade
  • Oxford City
  • Oxford Entertainment
  • Oxford Formal
  • Oxford Freshers' Fair
  • Oxford General
  • Oxford Jewish Congregation: index
  • Oxford Museums and Galleries
  • Oxford Politics
  • Oxford Religion
  • Oxford University
  • Oxford University Societies (also Clubs Committee): index
  • Oxford Trade

 

  • BIT

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

These headings are not indexed.

  • Misc. Newspapers and Magazines
  • Sample Newspapers
  • Propaganda newspapers

 

Named collections

  • (Graham) Pollard

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

Most of these headings are not indexed.

  • Charities / Charities and Societies
  • Elections
  • Environmental Issues
  • EU Referendum / Brexit: index
  • Politics Foreign
  • Politics General
  • General Elections
  • Local Elections
  • Trade Unions
  • Americana and Canadiana

For more information about our holdings of modern (post-1960) ephemera, see Modern ephemera categories explained.

Protest

Named collections

  • Rip Bulkeley: index
  • James Fraser: protest ephemera from New York City, including Columbia University, 1968 – 1970
  • John Fraser Collection of Propaganda Postcards: index
  • Hirsch: index
  • K. Jones: index
  • (Trevor) Pateman 1 and 2: index

Royalty

Named collections

Royal Printing Archive: index

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

  • Royalty: index
  • Golden Jubilee: index
  • Diamond Jubilee: index
  • Platinum Jubilee
  • Prince George (birth and christening): index
  • Princess Charlotte: index

For more information about our holdings of modern (post-1960) ephemera, see Modern ephemera categories explained.

War

Named collections

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

These headings are mostly not indexed.

  • Military
  • Anniversaries of WW1 and WW2

For more information about our holdings of modern (post-1960) ephemera, see Modern ephemera categories explained.

 

 

No additions.

Named collections

  • Coupland (mainly photographic processing): index

Modern ephemera headings

  • Paper
  • Typography

For more information about our holdings of modern (post-1960) ephemera, see Modern ephemera categories explained.

Named collections

 

  • Modern American Presses
  • Modern British & Irish Presses
  • Foreign Private Presses
  • Private Presses General
  • Press of Appletree Alley (American)
  • Arion Press (American)
  • Arman Collection
  • Black Sparrow Press (American)
  • Boetharson Press
  • Book Society of Southern California
  • British Printing Society
  • Hans Joachim Burgert
  • DePol
  • Dodson
  • Fleece Press
  • Gehenna and Ermite (American)
  • Gwas Gregynog; Hammer (Victor) (American)
  • IM Imprimit
  • Imprint Society (American)
  • Inky Parrot Press
  • Kit-Kat Press
  • Libanus Press
  • Lubran, Alfred
  • McCann, Duncan
  • Moschatel Press
  • Oblivion Boys
  • Oxford Guild of Printers
  • OUP
  • Penmiel Press
  • Pennington, Richard
  • Perpetua Press
  • Plough Press
  • Private Press Books
  • Private Presses General
  • Rocket Press
  • Samson Press: index
  • Toni Savage
  • Scolar Press
  • Schools of Art
  • September Press
  • Skelton’s Press
  • Spectrum Press
  • Stanbrook Abbey Press
  • Strawberry Press
  • Tern Press
  • Tithings Press
  • Tragara Press
  • RB Wilson (Martlett Press)
  • Whittington Press
  • Woodblock letter-press
  • Yellow Barn Press
  • Yellow Sands Press

 

  • Building Control (legal deposit)
  • Public Services

 

  • Religion

See also Oxford Religion, Oxford Jewish Congregation

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

For more information about our holdings of modern (post-1960) ephemera, see Modern ephemera categories explained.

Named collections

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

These headings are not indexed.

  • Transport / Transport General

For more information about our holdings of modern (post-1960) ephemera, see Modern ephemera categories explained.

Named collections

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

These headings are not indexed.

  • Hotels and holidays
  • What’s On & Tourism

For more information about our holdings of modern (post-1960) ephemera, see Modern ephemera categories explained.

Named collections

  • Bridgnorth (jobbing printing)
  • Dunstan (albums, etc): index
  • Gatliff Trust: index

Modern (post-1960) ephemera headings

  • Competitions, Lotteries, etc
  • Copyright Receipts
  • Environmental Issues
  • Millennium
  • National Trust
  • Paper

For more information about our holdings of modern (post-1960) ephemera, see Modern ephemera categories explained.

Modern ephemera categories explained

When the John Johnson Collection came to the Bodleian in 1968, a decision was taken to collect contemporary ephemera. Much of the early material remains unsorted, but from the 1980s a system of categorisation has been applied, with the intention that finer sorting should take place in due course. Most modern ephemera are unindexed, but their minimal level records include an indication of the years covered in each box. This listing gives the headings (sometimes with variant headings) under which modern ephemera can be found in SOLO.

Please contact the Librarian of the John Johnson Collection (jjcoll@bodleian.ox.ac.uk) for information on ordering modern ephemera.

NB: Two headings take precedence over the others, where items could fall into more than one category: Health and Oxford

Special categories (not in bold) are marked with an asterisk.

Antiques/Commercial Antiques

Art Galleries, Museums (for commercial art galleries see Fine art)

Arts misc see Entertainment misc. (includes Oxfordshire Art weeks)

Auctions

Badges (indexed)

Birth of Prince George*: index

Birth of Princess Charlotte*: index

Blank stationery (mostly received by copyright)

Board games (mostly received by copyright). See also Ballam Collection.

Bodley’s Librarian cards (Christmas cards sent to Bodley’s Librarian)

Book Jackets

Bookselling, book clubs

Booktrade General see also Publishing

British Printing Society

Building Control (copyright)

Calendars, large and Calendars, small (mostly received by copyright). Includes Advent calendars

Card Games (mostly received by copyright). See also Mary Gardiner, Ballam and Donald Welsh collections

Careers Booklets (mostly 1970s)

Catalogues (substantial commercial catalogues, e.g. Argos, John Lewis). See also Christmas catalogues

Charities & Societies (includes clubs)
Examples include: American Numismatic Society, American Philosophical Society, Ancient Society of College Youths, Art Fund, Art UK,  Association of European Printing Museums, Bibliographical Society, British Archaeological Association, British Association of Paper Historians, British Cartographic Society, British Numismatic Society, Campaign to Protect Rural England, Council for British Archaeology, Friends of Cathedral Music, Honourable Society of Lincoln’s Inn, Hundred Parishes Society, Huguenot Society, Lansdowne Club, Lutyens Trust, National Liberal Club, Not Forgotten Association, OXFAM, Ramblers’ Association, Richard III Society, Rotary Club, Royal Historical Society, Royal Institute of British Architects, Royal Over-Seas League, Saint Catherine Foundation, Society of Antiquaries of London, Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne, Society of Bookbinders, Travellers’ Club, Turf Club, William Cobbett Society, Women’s Institute, Woodland Trust.
Excludes charities for pets and guide dogs (see Domestic Pets)

Christmas cards (see also Bodley’s Librarian’s cards)

Christmas catalogues

Cinema, TV & Video

Commercial General / Commercial Miscellaneous: ephemera that fall outside the main commercial categories

Competitions, Lotteries (lotteries, scratch cards etc., also includes Christmas cracker jokes)

NB: Concerts, opera, ballet, other dance, musicals (leaflets, posters, programmes) are no longer collected by the John Johnson Collection, but are passed to the Music section.

Conservation (libraries, societies, education and environment)

Copyright Receipts. Games, toys, jigsaws, calendars, blank stationery and building control form discrete categories. Other miscellaneous stamped receipts are boxed together. Unstamped ephemera sent from legal deposit (mainly inserts from periodicals) are sorted into the general modern ephemera categories.

COVID-19 pandemic: index

Craft including artists’ supplies (commercial)

NB: Diaries are sent to Legal Deposit for cataloguing.

Diamond Jubilee 2012*: index

Domestic pets (started 2016): Includes charities for pets, guide dogs

Double Crown Club* (indexed)

Eclipse*

Education General (including online; ProQuest etc, also St. Bride). Also Employment & Education General

Elections see General Elections, Politics General, Local Elections, European Election (one box, 2019) (some indexed)

Employment

Entertainment General / Entertainment Misc.

Environment (started 2012). Takes precedence over: Household, Politics, Commercial misc., Charities, Public services except Oxford.
For Electric cars see Transport.
For Green Party see Politics
Energy: saving, producing (solar etc.); action for / against; Friends of the Earth / Earth Trust / Sylva Foundation / Traidcraft / British Association for Shooting & Conservation; Recycling (advice, requests); Advice on greener living; Reducing carbon footprints (including petrol adverts for cleaner environment); Plant conservation, seed banks, reforestation; Animal conservation, endangered species; Building conservation; Saving water; Fair trade
See also Extinction Rebellion, Reclaim the Power and other direct action groups (kept separately (started 2019))

Ephemera Society / Ephemera of ephemera*

EU Referendum / Brexit*: index

Fairs and Festivals

Fashion & Cosmetics (includes Hairdressing)

Finance & insurance (for Automobile Association see Transport)

Fine Art (commercial galleries etc).

Food & Soft drinks: Advertising, restaurants, etc.

Formal General (paper bags, plastic bags, greeting cards, bookmarkers, serviettes (unless named restaurant), blank stationery, compliment slips; also MICE (Modern Information Collector’s Exchange))

Fortnum and Mason*: a continuation of the pre-1960 Fortnum & Mason sequence. Much ephemera has been received from the Archivist of Fortnum & Mason

Gallery Five*

General Elections (some indexed)

Golden Jubilee*: index

Greetings cards (all categories except Christmas cards). See also Formal General

Harrods*

Health / Health General (takes precedence): All health issues (including vaping). For Oxford Health see Oxford General

Horticulture (includes gardens, seeds and florists)

Hotels & holidays

Household & DIY

Jigsaws (mostly received by copyright). See also Ballam Collection.

Laura Ashley

Libraries

Literary (started 2016): Modern material relating to authors, with separate sections for Tolkien, TE Lawrence, Lewis Carroll (Alice in Wonderland), Philip Pullman and JK Rowling’s Harry Potter books.

Local Elections

London Theatre (kept by venue)

Margaret Thatcher (death)* (indexed)

Marks & Spencer

Menus

Military (anniversaries)*

Millennium* (indexed)

Modern Artefacts

Modern British and Irish Presses (private presses) (indexed). Also many private presses boxed by press.

National Trust etc (also Royal Oak Foundation, English Heritage, Landmark Trust and Historic Houses Association)

Olympics 2012*: index

Photography

Politics (including Local Government elections)

Office supplies, Stationery

Oxford Booktrade (includes Oxford Literary Festival and Temple Bookbinders of Oxford; Blackwells, Bodleian Publishing and OUP catalogues, Oxford Mail)

Oxford City

Oxford Entertainment

Oxford Formal

Oxford Freshers’ Fair

Oxford General (includes sport, health, transport, education (private, Secretarial, musical etc.), non-university societies, local charities, community groups, sound)

Oxford Jewish Congregation: index

Oxford Museums & Galleries

Oxford Politics

Oxford Religion (see also Oxford Jewish Congregation)

Oxford Theatre (city and university, OUDS etc. forms a continuation of the pre-1960 sequence)

Oxford Trade (includes Oxford Castle, state education; libraries; city council; Oxfordshire council; Oxford Civic Society; Oxford Preservation Trust (Open Doors)

Oxford University (includes Brookes and Ruskin, Pusey House and college chapels, Maison Française and Mansfield College)

Oxford University Societies: index

Packaging (mostly 1970s: no longer collected)

Paper Bags

Photography

Plastic Bags (mostly 1970s: no longer collected as bio-degradable)

Platinum Jubilee*

Politics, Foreign

Politics General

Postcard Albums / Postcards (Unnamed Collections)

Property

Provincial Theatre

Publishing, excl. cats. (excluding catalogues)

Public services (gas, water, electricity, telephones, postal, military (army), Didcot power station; neighbourhood / community schemes etc.). NB. These ‘public services’ are now mostly privatised, but the section has been kept together here in the interests of consistency

Religion / Religion General (including Salvation Army, Church Urban Fund, Christian Aid, specific church organs, funerals)

Royal Shakespeare Company

Royalty (mostly relating to special events: births and birthdays, jubilees, weddings, funerals. See also Birth of Prince George, Diamond Jubilee 2012, Golden Jubilee, Platinum Jubilee): index

School Magazines (1970s)

School Prospectuses (1970s)

Slip Cases [indexed]

Sound (CD adverts, adverts for music magazines and sheet music, instrument making including organ building, organists associations,  audiobooks, musical instrument collections). Concert ephemera are sent to the Bodleian’s Music section

Sport / Sport General See also Olympics 2012

T E Lawrence* [indexed]

Technology

Theatre Misc

Toys (mostly received by copyright). See also Ballam Collection

Trade Unions (now included in Politics)

Transport / Transport General (including Automobile Association and Electric Cars)

Unsorted: 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, mixed dates

What’s On and Tourism

Wines, Spirits, Tobacco (includes beer, wine labels)

World War One Centenary* / World War One Commemorations* [indexed]

World War Two Anniversaries*