I found this Brentano’s envelope and Mrs. Avery Coonley’s calling card (?) at a second-hand bookstore in Connecticut. The calling card was in the envelope, which I found on a shelf behind some books in the religion section where it obviously fell out of a book.
Initially, I was more interested in the Brentano’s envelope and had no idea who Mrs. Avery Coonley was. After a little research, I believe this may have been Queene Ferry Coonley (1874-1958), born Addie Elizabeth Ferry.
Among her achievements and activities, Queene was a graduate of Vassar, a suffragist, and philanthropist. She was also an advocate of progressive education, and, in 1906, founded a school in Riverside, IL. In 1912, she founded what would become The Avery Coonley School in Downers Grove, IL, which is still in operation. She commissioned works by Frank Lloyd Wright and helped get him out of financial ruin in later years. In 1954, Coonley published a book with Charlotte Krum titled Great Thoughts: An Anthology of Sayings, Garnered Over the Years.
At first I assumed the envelope was from Brentano’s bookstore, but I haven’t been able to ID this logo. Most of the Brentano’s bookstore logos I’ve come across use a blockier font. Any leads or ideas are welcome.
It was a fun coincidence to find Queene’s card in a Connecticut bookstore when we both have a connection to Riverside, Illinois. The church I grew up attending was in Riverside, and as an adult I lived in an apartment overlooking that church. The first house I owned was in Brookfield, IL, the next town over. I’ve learned through my research that Brookfield asked Queene to fund their kindergarten, and she did so in a big way: she bought the land, commissioned William E. Drummond to build the school, and underwrote the tuition fees.
Riverside is a beautiful town with curvy roads and huge grand old homes. Designed by Frederick Law Olmstead in the 1860s, it is one of the first planned communities in the U.S. Check out my post on the beautiful Riverside Public Library.
I plan on doing more research on this fascinating woman. I’d love to find out how a baby who was given the name Addie Elizabeth at birth ended up going by the name Queene.
Post updated 9/2/2026 for readability and addition of Riverside map.