Rare books from Scraps of American History

New York: George P. Putnam, 1848, 1849. Revised. Original Cloth. Good/No jacket as issued. Three volume set with fold out maps, table of contents and index. Green cloth binding with blindstamp decorations on front cover and spine, gilt lettering on spine. Some edge wear to cover, corners and spine ends bumped, spines a bit faded, interior pages lightly tan with some foxing, pencil notations on front free end paper of Volume 1. Short tear in one map, foxing and wrinkles along with creases.

Fredericksburg, Virginia: The Citizens' Guild of Washington's Boyhood Home, 1926. Reprint. Hardcover. Good/No Jacket as Issued. Five volume set, illustrated with black and white plates protected with printed tissue overlays. A plate facing the frontispiece reads "These volumes of The Sponsors' Edition of the authorized life of George Washington by John Marshall issued in its original format, but with the text of the revised edition -- have been specially prepared for John S. Durland. Full leather with stamped and colored figure of Washington on front cover, stamped titles and design on spine, gilt top edge, brown end papers. Some edge wear and chipping of edges to covers, especially wear to spines, corners bumped, titles just legible on a couple of volumes, leather cracked at spine, bindings tight, boards attached to all volumes but some hinges may be a little weak, interior pages clean and lightly tanned. DAMAGED BY CUSTOMERS, much more chipping of spines, some leather missing on spines, other… Read More

Chapel Hill, North Carolina: The University of North Carolina Press, 1968. Not stated. Hardcover. Very Good/No jacket. 1183 pages with appendix and index, illustrated with black and white drawings and maps. The first descriptive flora to appear since 1788. Signed by two of the authors, Albert E. Radford and C. Ritchie Bell, on the title page. Bright green cloth binding with plant decoration and black titles on front cover and spine. Light edge wear, spine a little creased, light bumping of corners and spine ends, colors and titles bright, light spotting of cover, former owner's name and address plate on front end papers, interior pages clean with no obvious marks or notations, binding tight. Average size, measures 6 1/4 x 9 1/4 inches.

Charlemont, Massachusetts: Feet on the Ground Press, 1999. First edition. Hardcover. Fine/very good. 146 pages, illustrated with black and white photographs. Wonderful and long out of print detailed instruction on handling sheep, handling wool and shearing sheep with blades by the acknowledged master shearer. Signed at Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival in 1999 "To Merike and Dane, Best Wishes and much love, Kevin." Green cloth binding with gilt titles on spine. Book shows very light shelf wear at spine and slight bumping of corners, two or three tiny spots on front cover, a few more tiny spots on back cover, interior pages bright. Illustrated green dust jacket with green and black titles. Very light wear with slight edge wrinkling to dust jacket, small ding in back cover of jacket, not clipped. Rare and out of print. Animal husbandry. Measures 11 1/4 x 8 7/8 inches.

Hastings, Michigan: Stony Lonesome Press, 1995. First edition. Paperback. Fine/No jacket. 144 pages, illustrated with black and white drawings. A compilation of 19th century techniques for making felt hats and felting, with a 20th century update. The compiler, Suzanne Pufpaff, is a well known fiber artist and felter from Michigan who leads workshops and designs patterns for felters and knitters. Red soft pebbled wraps with gilt titles on front cover and spine. Very minor edge wear, small crease in leading bottom front corner, slight spotting of page edges, interior pages bright, binding tight. Book does not appear to have ever been read. Printed on archival acid free paper. Trade paperback, measures 5 1/2 x 8 1/2 inches.

Washington DC: Government Printing Office, 1889. First edition. Hardcover. Fair/No jacket. 1434 pages with index. Senate Executive Document No 47, Forty-eighth Congress, second session. A huge table of contents directs the reader to the treaties by country and then by date. Black cloth binding with darker titles on spine that might once have been gilt. Cover faded with spotting, edge wear, corners and spine ends bumped, crease in spine, a little spotting of end papers, small tear in bottom of front end papers at hinge, interior pages clean and lightly tanned, binding tight. Measures 6 x 9 1/4 x3 1/4 inches.

New York: W. F. Burgess, 1850. Not stated. Hardcover. Good/No jacket. 264 pages, double columned, illustrated title page and black and white illustrations throughout text. An early edition of the classic story of a young man's coming of age. Half leather over marble boards, brown title block with gilt titles on spine and gilt bands on spine. Some wear to leather with a bit of cracking along spine edges and small tear across spine about an inch down, gilt still bright, some edge wear to boards, corners and spine ends bumped and a bit worn, owner's names on front end papers, crease in front free end paper, some foxing of interior pages with light tanning, glue stains on end papers, binding tight. Measures 6 x 9 1/4 inches.

London: A. Strahan and T. Cadell, London; and for William Creech, Edinburgh, 1788. Second edition. Hardcover. Poor/No jacket. A four volume set early reprint of Sketches of the History of Man, Considerably Enlarged by the Last Additions and Corrections of the Author, in four volumes. Volume 1 -4. Edinburgh: Printed for A. Strahan and T. Cadell, London; and for William Creech, Edinburgh. M,DCC,LXXVII (1788). The author, Henry Home, Lord Kames, was a Scottish judge and writer at the center of the Scottish Enlightenment. This title, along with Historical Law Tracts, laid out his sociological theories, which influenced the study of modern history for two hundred years. Volujme 3 is of interest because of a considerable chapter on the American Indian.Leather bound volumes with gilt decoration on spine and probably had gilt lettering. Covers are in poor condition with chips in leather and edge bumps, some drastic, all but one front and back cover detached, one cover missing, some end papers… Read More

Philadelphia: Lindsay and Blakiston, 1849. First edition. Hardcover. Good/No jacket. 156 pages. Contains Mazelli, Cantos I to III, a poem set near Harper's Ferry in Maryland; the Misanthrope Reclaimed, Acts 1 to IV, and Miscellaneous Poems. Black cloth binding with blindstamped decorations on covers and gilt titles on spine. Some wear, spotting and fading of cover, gilt still bright, cloth split at edge of front spine, corners and spine ends bumped and chipped, back cover scuffed, author inscription in pencil on front free end paper "P. C. Kennedy, With compliments of The Author," later gift inscription from father to son on flyleaf, some foxing of interior pages, binding a little pulled in a couple of places but all pages attached, end papers tanned, small hole in back free end paper.

Philadelphia: Mathew Carey, 1809. New Edition. Hardcover. Good/No jacket. Carey, M.. 198 pages, illustrated with portrait frontispiece. Both volumes of the story bound in one book. Original calf binding with red title block on spine and gilt titles and bands on spine. Much wear and scrubbing to cover, although the gilt is still bright with just a little chipping where letters are close to edges, corners and spine ends heavily bumped, crack in leather at spine, former owner's name "Jane H. Brown October 25th, 1814" on front free end paper, interior pages tanned, binding appears tight but may require careful handling.

Edinburgh and London: William Blackwood and Sons, 1877. Not stated. Hardcover. Fair/No jacket. 624 pages with index, illustrated with five fold-out maps. Edited from the lectures and writings of the late Major C. Adams, professor of Military History at the Royal Military and Staff Colleges. Red cloth binding with blindstamped borders on front and back covers and gilt titles on spine, gray end papers. Spine darkened with chip in upper edge affecting part of titles, tear in cloth of spine, spotting, cloth split at spine edges, part of cloth missing at base of spine, corners bumped and frayed, spotting of cover, edge wear, former owner's name "O. B. Mitchall, Lieut. of Ordnance, received August 8th, 1884," interior pages a little tanned at edges, binding tight.

New York: H. C. Brewer Check Company, 1935. Probable First Edition. Hardcover. Good/No jacket. 171 pages, illustrated with black and white photographs. An engaging description of life in changing Russia during the years before and during the fall of the Russian empire. Original blue boards with gilt titles and decorations on front cover and spine. Cover scrubbed and stained, gilt on front bright but fading on spine, light edge wear, a little bumping of corners and spine ends, end papers tanned with a little staining, interior pages bright and clean, binding tight.

Chicago: Rand, McNally & Co., 1893. First edition. Hardcover. Good/No jacket. 268 pages, illustrated with advertisements, maps, plans and numerous black and white images and plates. A wonderful look at the World's Fair of 1893 in Chicago. Red leatherette binding with gilt titles on front cover and spine, brown end papers. Some spotting of cover, edge wear, scrubbing, corners and spine ends bumped, inscription and former owner's name "Sue Sheetz, Keyser, W.Va." on front free end paper in pencil, short tear in front free end paper and first page, interior pages a little tanned, binding tight.

New York: Longmans, Green and Co., Inc., 1945. Third printing. Hardcover. Good/No jacket. Baker, Mary Lee. 146 pages, illustrated with black and white plates. A little girl with a vivid imagination discovers ghostly secrets in her attic. Tan cloth binding with brown titles on spine, illustrated green end papers. Cover soiled and spotted with edge wear, corners and spine ends bumped, stamp on front and back fixed end papers "The Board of Education of the County of Hampshire" with small ink notations on front end papers, interior pages a little tanned with minor soiling, no obvious writing or scribbles, binding tight.

New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1930. First edition, as stated. Hardcover. Good/No jacket. 164 pages, plus Putnam's advertising, illustrated with black and white photo plates. With an introduction by Frederick S. Dellenbaugh of the Powell Colorado River Expedition of 1871. The memoir of a ten-year-old girl and her travel with her family down the Colorado River and Lower California. Orange cloth binding with black titles on front cover and spine, pictoral end papers. Spine faded and a bit soiled, light edge wear, corners and spine ends bumped, a little spotting, interior pages lightly tanned, binding tight, pencil notations on blank pages before half title, a little worming of back end papers with some surface loss.