# Is "The Lone Star Ranger" by Zane Grey a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Lone Star Ranger by Zane Grey (Harper & Brothers, 1915) is identified by: US Harper & Brothers first, 1915, original Harper cloth, illustrated. US Harper first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- US Harper & Brothers first, 1915, original Harper cloth, illustrated
- The copyright page carries the Harper printing code in which the second letter P denotes the year 1915 (first letter = month, second letter = year); the first printing shows the matching code with no added later-printing indications
- Publisher imprint reads Harper & Brothers
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Zane Grey |
| Publisher | Harper & Brothers |
| Year | 1915 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | US Harper & Brothers first, 1915, original Harper cloth, illustrated |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
US Harper & Brothers first, 1915, original Harper cloth, illustrated. The copyright page carries the Harper printing code in which the second letter P denotes the year 1915 (first letter = month, second letter = year); the first printing shows the matching code with no added later-printing indications.

## Is this the true first?
US Harper first. Under Harper's letter-code system in use from 1912, the first letter gives the month and the second the year; an unaltered first-printing code confirms the first. Harper did not begin stating 'First Edition' on the copyright page until 1922, so the code is the decisive tell for this title.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Grosset & Dunlap reprints in cheaper cloth are the common reprint; later Harper printings show a different or added code. The code is the decisive identifier.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Lone Star Ranger* by Zane Grey a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-lone-star-ranger
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.