Somers-based historic newspaper collection sells for $1.37 million

James O’Rourke
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Eric Caren displays an item from his document collection, “A Brief History of the Warr With the Indians in New England,” at the Caren Archive in Lincolndale in November 2013. 
 Bonhams/AP In this November 2013 photo provided by Bonhams, Eric Caren displays an item from his document collection, "A Brief History of the Warr With the Indians in New England," at the Caren Archive in Lincolndale, N.Y.  Caren, who has amassed what is considered one of the largest private collections of historical papers in the United States, will auction nearly 300 items from  his collection in April at the Manhattan location of Bonhams. The items for sale range from Revolutionary War documents describing the battles of Lexington and Concord to a mug shot of Western outlaw Butch Cassidy.
  • Caren's highest seller at auction was a Boston newspaper printing of The Declaration of Independence from The New-England Chronical printed on July 18, 1776, which sold for $257,000
  • Other pieces included anti-British propaganda listing the casualties from the battles of Lexington and Concord from 1775 and a color broadside of the Boston Massacre of 1770

NEW YORK –

Portions of an international collection of historical newspapers based in Somers have sold for more than $1.3 million.

Eric Caren's collection, known as The Caren Archive, contains more than a million pieces dating from the 16th century to the 1960s. Last Monday, 300 of those items were put up for auction at Bonhams New York.

"It is gratifying to see the tremendous emotional power that these documents hold being appreciated in the marketplace," Christina Geiger, director of the Books and Manuscripts Department at Bonhams New York, said after the pieces sold for $1.37 million. "This result is a testament to Eric Caren's astonishing ability to hunt down rare and unusual material that excites collectors around the globe."

Though his collection is international, Americana proved to be the most desired of Caren's collection, Geiger said in a statement.

Among the highlights of the auction was a piece of anti-British propaganda printed in 1775, "Bloody Butchery by the British Troops," which listed the casualties from the battles of Lexington and Concord. The item sold for $118,750, well beyond the anticipated $25,000 to $35,000.

Another item — Paul Revere's colored broadside issued after the Boston Massacre — sold for $100,000. The piece, called, "The Bloody Massacre perpetrated in King-Street Boston on March 5th, 1770," also was expected to fetch between $25,000 and $35,000.

The Caren Archives' highest seller, however — a Boston newspaper printing of The Declaration of Independence from The New-England Chronical, took in $257,000. The item, printed on July 18, 1776, had been projected to sell for between $50,000 and $70,000.

Caren, who has spent much of his time living in Rockland and Westchester counties, has said his collection holds something for anyone interested in history.

More than 200,000 additional items from Caren's archive remain on sale. Interested parties should contact Anne Wilson at 212-710-1301.

Twitter: @JORourkeT800

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