# Is "The Federalist" by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John Jay a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Federalist by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John Jay (J. and A. McLean, New York, 1788) is identified by: The true first in book form is the New York, printed and sold by J. US-only apex Americana; the McLean set is the first collected/book edition — distinct from the newspaper first appearances and preceding the George F.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- The true first in book form is the New York, printed and sold by J. and A. McLean edition, 2 volumes, 1788 — the essays having first appeared in New York newspapers in 1787–88
- Volume I (essays 1–36) was published 22 March 1788 and Volume II (essays 37–85) on 28 May 1788, in an edition of about 500 copies incorporating Hamilton's textual corrections
- Recognized issue points: a paging error in Volume II where page 256 is misnumbered 156
- Volume II is printed on slightly larger paper than Volume I; and a few copies were struck on superfine royal (large) writing paper besides the ordinary paper
- Publisher imprint reads J. and A. McLean, New York
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John Jay |
| Publisher | J. and A. McLean, New York |
| Year | 1788 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | The true first in book form is the New York, printed and sold by J. and A. McLean edition, 2 volumes, 1788 — the essays having first… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
The true first in book form is the New York, printed and sold by J. and A. McLean edition, 2 volumes, 1788 — the essays having first appeared in New York newspapers in 1787–88. Volume I (essays 1–36) was published 22 March 1788 and Volume II (essays 37–85) on 28 May 1788, in an edition of about 500 copies incorporating Hamilton's textual corrections. Recognized issue points: a paging error in Volume II where page 256 is misnumbered 156; Volume II is printed on slightly larger paper than Volume I; and a few copies were struck on superfine royal (large) writing paper besides the ordinary paper.

## Is this the true first?
US-only apex Americana; the McLean set is the first collected/book edition — distinct from the newspaper first appearances and preceding the George F. Hopkins edition of 1802 and all later printings. No foreign edition competes for precedence; the early French translation and every subsequent edition are later.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The text has been reprinted continuously since 1788; facsimile and law-publisher reprints of the McLean first exist, and the 1802 Hopkins edition ('The Federalist, on the New Constitution,' with added authorship attributions and further Hamilton corrections) is a separate later edition, not the first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Federalist* by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John Jay a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-federalist
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.