# Is "Delta Wedding" by Eudora Welty a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Delta Wedding by Eudora Welty (Harcourt, Brace & Company, 1946) is identified by: 'FIRST EDITION' stated on the copyright page; Harcourt, Brace and Company imprint, first printing April 1946 (Polk bibliography A5:1.4). The US Harcourt, Brace edition (April 1946) is the true first; the UK Bodley Head edition (1947) follows.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- 'FIRST EDITION' stated on the copyright page
- Harcourt, Brace and Company imprint, first printing April 1946 (Polk bibliography A5:1.4)
- Bound in tan cloth with the author's monogram stamped on the upper cover and the spine lettered and decorated in burgundy; illustrated Delta-country map endpapers and dust jacket by Charles Alston, the jacket retaining its printed first-issue price on the front flap
- Welty's first full-length novel
- 247 pages
- Publisher imprint reads Harcourt, Brace & Company
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Eudora Welty |
| Publisher | Harcourt, Brace & Company |
| Year | 1946 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | 'FIRST EDITION' stated on the copyright page |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
'FIRST EDITION' stated on the copyright page; Harcourt, Brace and Company imprint, first printing April 1946 (Polk bibliography A5:1.4). Bound in tan cloth with the author's monogram stamped on the upper cover and the spine lettered and decorated in burgundy; illustrated Delta-country map endpapers and dust jacket by Charles Alston, the jacket retaining its printed first-issue price on the front flap. Welty's first full-length novel; 247 pages.

## Is this the true first?
The US Harcourt, Brace edition (April 1946) is the true first; the UK Bodley Head edition (1947) follows.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later states omit the stated 'First Edition' and lack the price-intact first-issue Alston jacket; confirm the stated first on the copyright page.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Delta Wedding* by Eudora Welty a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/delta-wedding
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.