# Is "The Strange Career of Jim Crow" by C. Vann Woodward a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Strange Career of Jim Crow by C. Vann Woodward (Oxford University Press, 1955) is identified by: US Oxford University Press (New York) 1955 first edition, first printing, with no revision or later-printing statement on the copyright page. US Oxford University Press (New York) true first edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- US Oxford University Press (New York) 1955 first edition, first printing, with no revision or later-printing statement on the copyright page
- Bound in black cloth
- Grew out of the James W. Richard Lectures Woodward delivered at the University of Virginia in 1954
- The first-issue dust jacket should retain its printed price
- Publisher imprint reads Oxford University Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | C. Vann Woodward |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press |
| Year | 1955 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | US Oxford University Press (New York) 1955 first edition, first printing, with no revision or later-printing statement on the copyright page |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
US Oxford University Press (New York) 1955 first edition, first printing, with no revision or later-printing statement on the copyright page. Bound in black cloth. Grew out of the James W. Richard Lectures Woodward delivered at the University of Virginia in 1954. The first-issue dust jacket should retain its printed price.

## Is this the true first?
US Oxford University Press (New York) true first edition. The later revised and enlarged editions are 'first thus,' not the true first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Multiple revised editions followed (notably the revised editions of the 1960s and later); the 1955 first printing is the true first. Verify the absence of revision or later-printing statements on the copyright page.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Strange Career of Jim Crow* by C. Vann Woodward a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-strange-career-of-jim-crow
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.