# Is "The Bridge" by Hart Crane a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Bridge by Hart Crane (Black Sun Press, 1930) is identified by: True first is the Black Sun Press (Paris) limited edition, 1930, with three Walker Evans photogravures: 50 copies on Japan vellum signed by Crane and 200 numbered copies on Holland Van Gelder paper. Bibliographic crux: the Black Sun Press Paris limited (with the three Walker Evans photographs) is the true first; the Liveright New York edition is the first trade and first American issue.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- True first is the Black Sun Press (Paris) limited edition, 1930, with three Walker Evans photogravures: 50 copies on Japan vellum signed by Crane and 200 numbered copies on Holland Van Gelder paper
- The New York Liveright trade edition followed in 1930 as the first American trade issue (dark blue cloth, jacket with a Walker Evans photograph)
- Publisher imprint reads Black Sun Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Hart Crane |
| Publisher | Black Sun Press |
| Year | 1930 |
| True first | American edition |
| Format | Poetry |
| Key point | True first is the Black Sun Press (Paris) limited edition, 1930, with three Walker Evans photogravures: 50 copies on Japan vellum signed by… |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
True first is the Black Sun Press (Paris) limited edition, 1930, with three Walker Evans photogravures: 50 copies on Japan vellum signed by Crane and 200 numbered copies on Holland Van Gelder paper. The New York Liveright trade edition followed in 1930 as the first American trade issue (dark blue cloth, jacket with a Walker Evans photograph).

## Is this the true first?
Bibliographic crux: the Black Sun Press Paris limited (with the three Walker Evans photographs) is the true first; the Liveright New York edition is the first trade and first American issue. The Evans plates marked his debut as a published photographer.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition; the crux is the Black Sun Press limited (true first, Evans photogravures) versus the Liveright trade first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Bridge* by Hart Crane a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-bridge
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.