Old Mexico and Her Lost Provinces 1883. First Edition
New York: Harper & Brothers. Franklin Square, 1883. First Edition. Signed. Presentation Copy. Bound in red cloth with gilt titles.
509 pp. plus 6 pp. advertisements [8.75 x 6 inches] [English] Good. Bishop, William Henry
Old Mexico and Her Lost Provinces
1883
Publisher: Harper & Brothers, Franklin Square, New York
509 pp. plus 6 pp. advertisements [8.75 x 6 inches] [English] Good
A firsthand account of Bishop's journey through Mexico, Southern California, and Arizona by way of Cuba, covering everything from the railways and mining towns of Mexico to the vineyards of Monterey and the streets of early Los Angeles. Part II, covering the lost provinces, includes one of the earliest published accounts of Tombstone, Arizona, written shortly after the OK Corral gunfight and describing the Earps, Curly Bill, Sheriff Behan, and the general activity of the mining town. Illustrated throughout.
Bound in red cloth boards with embossed illustrations of a locomotive below and a harbor scene above, beneath a Mesoamerican figure in a gilt medallion. Gilt titles to spine. First Edition.
A fine association copy presented by the author directly to Mrs. Julian Hawthorne, Mary Albertina "Minnie" Amelung Hawthorne, wife of Julian Hawthorne and daughter-in-law of Nathaniel Hawthorne, in the year of publication. Tipped in to the first endpaper is a two-page autograph letter signed by Bishop, dated November 1, 1883, written from his home at 15 West 26th Street, New York, where he writes to Minnie about sending her his book on Mexico after the two had met at a gathering at Mr. Carnegie's. He also takes a moment to tease her about whether Long Island, where the Hawthornes were living at the time, counts as an island or a peninsula. On the following page, in Bishop's hand, a signed presentation inscription reads "To Mrs. Julian Hawthorne, with compliments of W.H. Bishop, New York, Nov. 1st 1883." A wonderful piece of literary history connecting Bishop directly to the Hawthorne family in 1883.
Good. Heavy shelf wear throughout with significant damp staining to the rear board, which appears to have been retouched with cloth paint. Spine heavily faded. Corners bumped. Interior shows a damp stain running through the bottom inch of the book throughout, not affecting legibility. Numerous illustrations present and intact. Good. Item #130
Price: $600.00