# Is "The House of the Seven Gables" by Nathaniel Hawthorne a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne (Ticknor, Reed & Fields, 1851) is identified by: First edition, first printing of 1,690 copies, Ticknor, Reed & Fields, Boston, 1851 (BAL 7604), in brown cloth with the publisher's name gilt-stamped on the spine. US true first edition, Ticknor, Reed & Fields, 1851.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition, first printing of 1,690 copies, Ticknor, Reed & Fields, Boston, 1851 (BAL 7604), in brown cloth with the publisher's name gilt-stamped on the spine
- First-printing points: the advertisement catalogue at the FRONT (bound between the endpapers) is dated March 1851 in the earliest state, and the type is battered on page 149
- Later states carry ads dated May 1851, and subsequent printings carry ads dated October 1851 or January 1853
- Publisher imprint reads Ticknor, Reed & Fields
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Nathaniel Hawthorne |
| Publisher | Ticknor, Reed & Fields |
| Year | 1851 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition, first printing of 1,690 copies, Ticknor, Reed & Fields, Boston, 1851 (BAL 7604), in brown cloth with the publisher's name… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
First edition, first printing of 1,690 copies, Ticknor, Reed & Fields, Boston, 1851 (BAL 7604), in brown cloth with the publisher's name gilt-stamped on the spine. First-printing points: the advertisement catalogue at the FRONT (bound between the endpapers) is dated March 1851 in the earliest state, and the type is battered on page 149. Later states carry ads dated May 1851, and subsequent printings carry ads dated October 1851 or January 1853.

## Is this the true first?
US true first edition, Ticknor, Reed & Fields, 1851. There is no prior UK edition affecting priority. The first printing was 1,690 copies (April 1851); three further printings that year brought the first-year total to 6,710 copies, so 6,710 is the year's aggregate, not the first-printing quantity.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later Houghton, Riverside, and other reprint-house issues are common. A first printing must bear the 1851 Ticknor, Reed & Fields imprint, the front advertisement catalogue dated March 1851, and the battered type on page 149; ads dated May 1851, October 1851, or January 1853 indicate a later state or printing.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The House of the Seven Gables* by Nathaniel Hawthorne a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-house-of-the-seven-gables
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.