Is My Old Yeller a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Harper & Brothers, New York, 1956, illustrated by Carl Burger; collation approximately [x] + 158 pages
• Dealer descriptions agree that the first printing is identified by the Library of Congress card catalog number on the copyright page with no later-printing or reprint statement, rather than by a printed "First Edition" line
• The binding is a two-part case: green cloth-patterned paper over boards with a black cloth spine, stamped in gilt
• The jacket is lemon-yellow, reproducing the frontispiece image of the boy and his dog, with the price present at the front flap and the code "No
• 7042A" printed at the foot of that front flap — the flap code is the most-cited single point, and price-clipped jackets forfeit it
• Harper's letter printing code (month-letter/year-letter) is documented for the period but is not cited by any of the dealers describing Old Yeller firsts, so it should not be relied on as a point for this title

How Harper & Brothers marked a first edition

• From 1922: also began printing 'First Edition' on the copyright page in addition to the code.
• Letter code discontinued after 1949; later Harper & Row used standard statements/number lines.

Full Harper & Brothers first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Confirm the first-edition statement — look for “First Edition,” “First Printing,” or the publisher’s equivalent wording.
3. 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.
4. Verify this is the American true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
5. 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.
6. 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.

Is this the true first?

The census claim is corrected: the American Harper & Brothers 1956 is the true first, but the first UK edition is Hodder & Stoughton, London, 1957 — not Collins. The Hodder first UK printing states "First Published 1957" on the copyright page with no reprint statement. Only the Harper 1956 is the true first; the Hodder 1957 is collected as the first English edition.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No title-specific book-club point is documented in the dealer literature for Old Yeller. Apply the standard mid-century tells: an unpriced jacket, a blind-stamped square/circle/dot at the lower rear board, and smaller trim on lighter paper stock than the Harper trade issue. Later Harper/HarperCollins, Scholastic and HarperClassics printings are reprints; jackets or back panels mentioning Gipson's later books or the 1957 Newbery Honor or Disney film postdate the first printing.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Old Yeller a first edition?

A first edition of Old Yeller by Fred Gipson (Harper & Brothers) is identified by: Harper & Brothers, New York, 1956, illustrated by Carl Burger; collation approximately [x] + 158 pages.

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. The census claim is corrected: the American Harper & Brothers 1956 is the true first, but the first UK edition is Hodder & Stoughton, London, 1957 — not Collins.

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

No title-specific book-club point is documented in the dealer literature for Old Yeller. Apply the standard mid-century tells: an unpriced jacket, a blind-stamped square/circle/dot at the lower rear board, and smaller trim on lighter paper stock than the Harper trade issue. Later Harper/HarperCollins, Scholastic and HarperClassics printings are reprints; jackets or back panels mentioning Gipson's later books or the 1957 Newbery Honor or Disney film postdate the first printing.

I have a first edition of Old Yeller — 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.