# Is "One Nation" by Wallace Stegner a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of One Nation by Wallace Stegner (Houghton Mifflin Company, 1945) is identified by: Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1945. True first US nonfiction (a text-and-picture study of American minorities), an Anisfield-Wolf Award winner.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1945
- First edition, first printing identified by agreement of the year 1945 on both the title page and the copyright page, with no statement of a later printing
- A 'Life-in-America Prize Book,' by Stegner and the Editors of Look; profusely illustrated with photographs
- Tan cloth with printed labels
- Publisher imprint reads Houghton Mifflin Company
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Wallace Stegner |
| Publisher | Houghton Mifflin Company |
| Year | 1945 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1945 |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1945. First edition, first printing identified by agreement of the year 1945 on both the title page and the copyright page, with no statement of a later printing. A 'Life-in-America Prize Book,' by Stegner and the Editors of Look; profusely illustrated with photographs. Tan cloth with printed labels.

## Is this the true first?
True first US nonfiction (a text-and-picture study of American minorities), an Anisfield-Wolf Award winner.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No major book-club edition concern.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *One Nation* by Wallace Stegner a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/one-nation
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.