Anne and David Bromer

In 1964, while Anne Bromer was enrolled in the Library Science program at Simmons College, students in her rare books course visited the Library at Williams College. David Bromer was invited to come along. Richard Archer, Curator of Chapin Library's rare book department, unlocked the cabinets and vaults, putting the books into the hands of his students. From that encounter with magnificent medieval manuscripts and early printed books, the seeds of a vocation took root. Four years later, Bromer Booksellers issued Catalogue One.

In 1974, Anne Bromer became a member of the ABAA. David Bromer, with a career in scientific research and a Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, joined the firm in 1976. Now, after more than 30 years, Bromer Booksellers can still be found at 607 Boylston Street.

Bromer Booksellers purchased important private collections, as for example the miniature book collection of Stanley Marcus and the fore-edge paintings of Estelle Doheny. They have issued nearly 150 catalogues and lists since the first one which appeard in 1968. Anne Bromer has written many articles, and a biography of Dorothy Abbe, which was published as "Strings Attached" by the Boston Public Library and the Society of Printers in 2000. She has also co-written a full color history of “Miniature Books: 4,000 Years of Tiny Treasures“. David Bromer served as a Trustee on the Board of The Associates for the Boston Public Library. In 2005 the Bromers established a Rare Book Fund at the Boston Public Library to further educate the citizens of Boston about the hidden treasures of the Library. This endowment funded "On the Edge: The Hidden Art of Fore-Edge Book Painting", an online exhibit of fore-edge paintings from the Boston Public Library's Albert H. Wiggin Collection.

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>>> On the Edge: The Hidden Art of Fore-Edge Book Painting