# Is "The Bride of the Innisfallen and Other Stories" by Eudora Welty a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Bride of the Innisfallen and Other Stories by Eudora Welty (Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1955) is identified by: First edition, Harcourt, Brace and Company, New York, 1955, stating 'first edition' on the copyright page; a collection of seven stories — 'No Place for You, My Love,' 'The Burning,' 'The Bride of the Innisfallen,' 'Ladies in Spring,' 'Circe,' 'Kin,' and 'Going to Naples.' Bound in light yellowish-brown cloth, blocked and titled in light blue and gilt on the spine. US Harcourt, Brace first edition of 1955; the UK edition (Hamish Hamilton, 1955) follows.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition, Harcourt, Brace and Company, New York, 1955, stating 'first edition' on the copyright page; a collection of seven stories — 'No Place for You, My Love,' 'The Burning,' 'The Bride of the Innisfallen,' 'Ladies in Spring,' 'Circe,' 'Kin,' and 'Going to Naples.' Bound in light yellowish-brown cloth, blocked and titled in light blue and gilt on the spine
- The first-issue jacket should carry its printed price on the front flap
- Publisher imprint reads Harcourt, Brace and Company
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Eudora Welty |
| Publisher | Harcourt, Brace and Company |
| Year | 1955 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition, Harcourt, Brace and Company, New York, 1955, stating 'first edition' on the copyright page; a collection of seven stories… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
First edition, Harcourt, Brace and Company, New York, 1955, stating 'first edition' on the copyright page; a collection of seven stories — 'No Place for You, My Love,' 'The Burning,' 'The Bride of the Innisfallen,' 'Ladies in Spring,' 'Circe,' 'Kin,' and 'Going to Naples.' Bound in light yellowish-brown cloth, blocked and titled in light blue and gilt on the spine. The first-issue jacket should carry its printed price on the front flap.

## Is this the true first?
US Harcourt, Brace first edition of 1955; the UK edition (Hamish Hamilton, 1955) follows. Note that binding/issue points are contested: the Ahearns describe certain copies as 'first edition, third issue, second binding' while Noel Polk's bibliography treats them as 'first edition, second printing (concealed)' — a distinction worth checking against the specific copy.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later reprints drop the 'first edition' statement on the copyright page.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Bride of the Innisfallen and Other Stories* by Eudora Welty a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-bride-of-the-innisfallen-and-other-stories
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.