How to identify a first printing
- 1940s-1966 (Alan Swallow, Denver): No 'first edition' statement on first printings; later printings noted on the copyright page when reprinted. Identify a first printing by the absence of any later-printing notation. Many wartime and early titles are stapled or saddle-stitched pamphlets and chapbooks with the date matching the copyright.
- Sage Books imprint (Swallow's Western/regional line, 1950s-1960s): same practice — no first-printing statement; later printings noted.
- 1967-1979 (Swallow Press Inc., Chicago, after Alan Swallow's 1966 death): generally no explicit 'First Edition' line; later printings or 'Second printing' stated on the copyright page. Number lines begin appearing on some trade titles in the 1970s.
- 1979 onward (licensing agreement with Ohio University Press; Athens, OH): transitional; copyright pages increasingly use a number line, lowest digit present (for example '...3 2 1') = first printing.
- Modern Swallow Press/Ohio University Press titles: full number line on the copyright page; presence of '1' = first printing, alongside a Library of Congress CIP block.
Notable points & cautions
- Alan Swallow (1915-1966) was a one-man literary press championing Yvor Winters, J.V. Cunningham, Janet Lewis, Anais Nin, Frank Waters, Vardis Fisher, and Western/Mountain-West writers; he also ran the University of Denver Press (1947-1953).
- After Swallow's death the firm moved to Chicago (Swallow Press Inc.). Ohio University Press entered a licensing agreement with Swallow Press in 1979 and formally acquired the imprint and its back catalog of 276 titles in 2008, operating it as the trade imprint Swallow Press/Ohio University Press.
- Early Denver imprints (Swallow & Critchlow, The Swallow Press, Big Mountain Press, Sage Books, Alan Swallow) overlap and are sometimes conflated; check the imprint name against the date.
- Book Club editions are essentially nonexistent for this literary press; scarcity comes from small print runs, not from book-club-edition risk.
Imprints
First editions also appear under: Alan Swallow, Sage Books, Big Mountain Press, Swallow Press/Ohio University Press. Each generally follows the house convention above.
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if my Swallow Press book is a first edition?
Check the copyright page. 1940s-1966 (Alan Swallow, Denver): No 'first edition' statement on first printings; later printings noted on the copyright page when reprinted. Identify a first printing by the absence of any later-printing notation. Many wartime and early titles are stapled or saddle-stitched pamphlets and chapbooks with the date matching the copyright. Sage Books imprint (Swallow's Western/regional line, 1950s-1960s): same practice — no first-printing statement; later printings noted.
Does Swallow Press use a number line?
Sage Books imprint (Swallow's Western/regional line, 1950s-1960s): same practice — no first-printing statement; later printings noted.
Is a book-club edition a Swallow Press first edition?
No. Book-club editions reprint the text but are not the true first edition. Alan Swallow (1915-1966) was a one-man literary press championing Yvor Winters, J.V. Cunningham, Janet Lewis, Anais Nin, Frank Waters, Vardis Fisher, and Western/Mountain-West writers; he also ran the University of Denver Press (1947-1953).
What era does this cover?
This covers Swallow Press (1940s-present (Alan Swallow 1940s-1966; Swallow Press Inc. 1966-1979; licensing with Ohio University Press from 1979; OUP trade imprint from 2008)). Conventions changed over time, so confirm the era of your copy.