A TOUR FROM THE CITY OF NEW-YORK, TO DETROIT, IN THE MICHIGAN TERRITORY, MADE BETWEEN THE 2D OF MAY AND THE 22D OF SEPTEMBER, 1818 ... THE TOUR CONTAINS NOTICES OF WHAT FELL UNDER THE AUTHOR'S OBSERVATION CONCERNING THE NATURAL HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY OF THE REGION OVER WHICH HIS TRAVELS EXTENDED, WITH BRIEF REMARKS UPON SUCH REMARKABLE EVENTS AND CHARACTERS AS HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO GIVE INTEREST TO DIFFERENT PLACES. THE TOUR IS ACCOMPANIED WITH A MAP UPON WHICH THE ROUTE WILL BE DESIGNATED; A PARTICULAR MAP OF THE FALLS AND RIVER OF NIAGARA, AND THE ENVIRONS OF THE CITY OF DETROIT. New-York: Published for the Author, by Kirk & Mercein ... , 1819. 23.5x15 cm (octavo), pp. [i-iii] iv-vi [vii] viii [9] 10-228 [i]-lxiii: appendix [lxiv: blank] [1-7]: index [8: blank], 3 folded engraved maps, one of which is hand-colored in outline, publisher's two-part drab boards, paper label affixed to spine panel, all edges untrimmed. First edition, first printing. A detailed account of Darby's travels "from New York, by Albany, Schenectady, and Utica, to Sacket’s Harbor, and thence through Lake Ontario, to the St. Lawrence river, and down that stream to Hamilton village. Thence along both banks of the St. Lawrence, from Hamilton to the Thousand Islands; thence to Sacket's Harbor by water; from that place by the route of great Sodus, Geneva, Canandaigua, and Batavia, to Buffalo; and from thence to Black Rock, Fort Erie, the Falls of Niagara, Queenstown, Lewiston, and the memorable fields of Bridgewater and Chippewa. After viewing the interest pass of Niagara, the author traversed the south shore of Lake Erie to the City of Detroit, and visited in the latter range Dunkirk, Erie, Cleveland, Sandusky, and other places of less note" (from the title page). Appendix III prints a description of Ballston Spa written in a letter dated 27 November 1818 to Darby by Reuben Sears. In 1818, William Darby (1775-1854), self-taught geographer, surveyor, mapmaker and author, "one of the surveyors engaged in running the boundary between the United States and Canada, made the trip to the Michigan territory described in A TOUR FROM THE CITY OF NEW-YORK, TO DETROIT, IN THE MICHIGAN TERRITORY (1819) ... During the next thirty-five years he lived in Harrisburg, Pa., on a farm near Sandy Spring, Montgomery County, Md., and in Washington, D. C., where he was for some years a government clerk. He lectured widely, wrote and compiled much, and for a quarter of a century was one of the leading American geographers" (DAB). Dow I, p. 157. Howes D 66. Sabin 18533. Streeter Sale 841. Boards worn and stained, outer joints cracked, damp staining and foxing throughout, but still a solid, good copy. Enclosed in a custom quarter burgundy morocco slipcase (a bit scuffed) and cloth chemise. Provenance: Bookplate of Americana collector Ernest J. Wessen inside chemise. (#179166).
Price: $850.00
No statement of printing.