John MacKay Shaw Childhood in Poetry Collection

Shaw went to work for the Bell Telephone System as a adult, and remained a public relations executive with that company until he retired in 1959. He changed his name legally to John MacKay Shaw to distinguish himself from all the other John Shaws he had discovered while working a project redesigning the Yellow Pages for New York City. He chose MacKay in honor of his mother's uncle, the renowned scholar, navigator, and teacher John MacKay of Stornoway, Isle of Lewis, Scotland.

When his two children were young, Shaw read and sang to them often. He recited poetry, sang the old Glasgow drinking songs, Gilbert and Sullivan, and songs of the Gay Nineties. However, the children wanted to hear poems about them, not about other children. He promised to write them if they would provide the subjects for him to write about. Each year between 1933 and 1937, he collected the poems he had written that year and had them printed in pamphlets which he sent to friends at Christmas. Realizing that other fathers must have written poems for their children, he went looking for them in the second-hand bookstores. Thus began his collection of Childhood in Poetry.

For thirty years, while continuing to work for the Bell System, John MacKay Shaw haunted the second-hand bookstores of Great Britain and the United States, poring over catalogs in the evenings, searching out and purchasing rare and first editions of poetry for, about, and by children. He studied the books, read and wrote about them and their authors, and discoursed extensively with other collectors and scholars.

Upon retirement in 1959, Shaw gave his collection of almost 6,000 volumes to Florida State University (FSU) Libraries. For the next 25 years, Shaw went to the library daily to study, write, and talk about his books. He continued adding to his collection. Shaw died in Tallahassee, Florida on March 15, 1984.

For more information about John Shaw, see the finding aid for his personal and collection papers.

Pages

: Sparkling and bright: a new collection of hymns and tunes for Sunday schools, young people's societies of Christian Endeavor and all meetings for praise and worship; [compiled] by J.H. Tenney and Chas. Edw. Prior., Includes index., Signed by one of the authors; page tipped in inside front cover.

: Special sacred songs; compiled and arranged for use in the Northfield conventions, by Ira D. Sankey, James McGranahan and Geo. C. Stebbins.

: Special sacred songs: compiled and arranged for use in the Northfield conferences. No. 2; by Ira D. Sankey, James McGranahan and Geo. C. Stebbins., Includes index.

: Spiritual songs: or, Songs of praise to Almighty God, upon several occasions. Together with the Song of songs, which is Solomon's : first turn'd, then paraphrased in English verse : with an addition of a sacred poem on Dives and Lazarus. To which is added; Without music., Attributed to Mason by the Dictionary of National Biography., "Penitential cries" was begun by Mason, and carried on by Thomas Shepherd. Cf. Halkett & Laing, Dict. of anon. and pseudon. English lit., 1928., Running titles: Songs of praise to Almighty God; Penitential cries; The Song of songs which is Solomon's., "Penetential cries" has separate title page: The sixth edition corrected. London : Printed for Tho. Parkhurst ..., 1701.

: St. Mungo series of school songs; Cover title, Unacc. songs in tonic sol-fa notation, Includes index

: Steps to reading; by N. Dale ; with pictures by Walter Crane., "Engraved and printed by Edmund Evans"--P. 16., Label on pam folder: No. 1562 (No. in Childhood in poetry by John McKay Shaw).

: Sunday school hymn book; published by the Sunday School Association., Includes supplement: The little hymn book. 2nd ed., Without music., Includes indexes.

: Sunny days and playtime hours; Two little Chinese -- The birthday horse -- Little Tommy's dream -- How Tommy learned his letters -- Janie's lesson -- Getting acquainted -- A puzzled boy -- Our little horsemen -- The story of Tildy Muffet -- At Dot's house -- William McElroy's story.

: Sunshine: songs for Sunday schools; by Chas. A. Gabriel., 93 hymns., With music., Includes index.

: Sweets for leisure hours; "Embellished with sixteen neatly coloured engravings.", Pages of text printed on one side of leaf only, the printed pages facing each other; blank pages included in pagination., Illustrations hand-colored., No. 3779 in: Shaw, J.M., Childhood in poetry.

: Swollen-headed William; text adapted by E. V. Lucas ; drawings adapted by Geo. Morrow., Parody on Struwwelpeter by Heinrich Hoffmann-Donner., From Shaw Bibliography: English propaganda assumes literacy in its audience. Here English critic and biographer E.V. Lucas (1868-1938) offers a political parody of Heinrich Hoffman's "Struwwelpeter." Methuen also published patriotic speeches and Kipling's Great War writings.

: Swords and flutes; From Shaw bibliography: In style and statement there is no greater contrast than between Seymour's "The Deathless Dead" and Owen's "Anthem...."

: Tales for youth: in thirty poems : to which are annexed, historical remarks and moral applications in prose; by the author of "Choice emblems for the improvement of youth," &c. ; ornamented with cuts, neatly designed and engraved on wood, by Bewick., Publisher's advertisements, 2 unnumbered pages at end., Frontispiece dated "Decemr. 17, 1793.", Preface signed: J. H. W., Signatures: A⁴ B-O⁶ P²., Error in pagination; page viii misnumbered x., Copper engraved frontispiece by Thomas Cook. 30 half-page rectangular wood-engraved head-pieces by John Bewick., Publisher's advertisements, (2 pages at end).