Is My Exploration of the Colorado River of the West and Its Tributaries a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Washington: GPO, 1875, quarto, collating xi and 291 pages, with two large folding sheets at the rear -- the "Green River from the Union Pacific Railroad to the Mouth of White River" map and a companion river profile, not present in every copy as issued -- plus 80 wood-engraved illustrations numbered 1 to 80 in the text, printed on roughly 72 plates since several plates carry more than one numbered figure
• The narrative interleaves Powell's account of his celebrated 1869 descent of the Colorado with material drawn from his better-documented second expedition of 1871-72, without clearly separating the two
• As a government publication issued under the Smithsonian's imprint rather than a trade publisher, first-edition copies are found in more than one original binding style -- plain dark cloth in some copies, gilt-lettered cloth or half calf in others -- so binding alone is not a reliable guide; collating the text against the full run of 80 numbered illustrations and confirming both rear sheets are present is the primary check for completeness

How to confirm the first-printing statement

Publishers stated first printings differently by era. The decisive tells are a printed “First Edition/First Printing” statement, a number line whose lowest number is 1 (Random House ends at 2), or a dated first printing with no later printings listed. Paste your copyright page into the number-line decoder.

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
3. Rule out a book-club edition — a blind-stamp on the rear board or a jacket with no printed price marks a book-club copy.
4. Photograph four things — the front cover, spine, title page, and copyright page — the standard record for identification.

The dust jacket

For a collectible first edition the dust jacket matters as much as the book. Confirm the jacket is present and unclipped — the printed price should still be at the corner of the flap (a clipped corner or a price-less flap can indicate a book-club issue). First-state jackets can differ from later ones in the cover art, blurbs, or review quotations; where a specific first-state jacket point is known for this title it is noted above.

Binding & format

Where multiple bindings exist, the hardcover trade issue is usually (but not always) the precedence copy — confirm against the points above. Later printings often show cheaper cloth, thinner boards, or simplified spine stamping. A simultaneous signed or limited issue, when one exists, is a distinct state from the trade first.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Powell rewrote and reissued the narrative in 1895, in a popularized form, as "Canyons of the Colorado" (Flood & Vincent, Meadville, Pennsylvania) -- a different text from the 1875 government report. The now-common title "The Exploration of the Colorado River and Its Canyons" belongs to Dover Publications' 1961 unabridged reprint of that 1895 text, not to the 1875 first edition or to the 1895 original.P-035591

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Exploration of the Colorado River of the West and Its Tributaries a first edition?

A first edition of Exploration of the Colorado River of the West and Its Tributaries by John Wesley Powell (Government Printing Office) is identified by: Washington: GPO, 1875, quarto, collating xi and 291 pages, with two large folding sheets at the rear -- the "Green River from the Union Pacific Railroad to the Mouth of White River" map and a companion river profile, not present in every copy as issued -- plus 80 wood-engraved illustrations numbered 1 to 80 in the text, printed on roughly 72 plates since several plates carry more than one numbered figure.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key.

Is the book-club edition the same as the first?

Powell rewrote and reissued the narrative in 1895, in a popularized form, as "Canyons of the Colorado" (Flood & Vincent, Meadville, Pennsylvania) -- a different text from the 1875 government report. The now-common title "The Exploration of the Colorado River and Its Canyons" belongs to Dover Publications' 1961 unabridged reprint of that 1895 text, not to the 1875 first edition or to the 1895 original.

I have a first edition of Exploration of the Colorado River of the West and Its Tributaries — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap — an unclipped, priced jacket matters. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and use the free First Edition Checker to decode the printing. To sell, the author’s collecting guide covers the market. And if you are clearing books in the Albuquerque area, the New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies are identified rather than discarded.

Glossary

First edition

Every copy printed from the first setting of type. Collectors usually want the first edition, first printing (the true first).

First printing / impression

A single press run from that setting. The first printing is the earliest and most desirable; later printings are still the first edition but not the true first.

Number line (printer's key)

A row of numbers on the copyright page (e.g. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1). The lowest number present is the printing — a line including 1 marks a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2).

Points of issue

Specific physical details — a stated edition, a number line, a typo, a jacket state — that identify the true first printing.

Book-club edition (BCE)

A reprint made for a book club. Tells include a blind-stamped dot or square on the rear board and a dust jacket with no printed price. Not the true first.

First thus

The first appearance of a particular version (first paperback, first illustrated, first U.S. printing) — a first of that kind, not the first edition of the work.