Twelfth Annual Report of the United States Geological and Geographical Survey of the Territories: A Report of Progress of the Exploration in Wyoming and Idaho for the Year 1878. In Two Parts. Parts I & II

Washington DC: Government Printing Office, 1883. 2 volume set.1809, 503pp. Octavos [235 cm] publisher's black cloth. Boards faded with some staining. Minor dampstaining to both volumes. A few small marks internally.

Part I: complete with all plates. Lacks the rear pocket with maps. Three fold-out maps in text.
Part II: 83 of the 97 plates are present (lacks geology plates A,B,C,III,XII,XIII,XIV,XV,XVII,VXIII,XXII,XXIV,XXIX,XXXII) Complete with all figures. 10 of the 11 maps are present (lacks Map of the Lower Geyser Basin). Hayden's expedition was the first federally funded geological survey to explore and further document features in the region soon to become Yellowstone National Park, and these reports played a prominent role in convincing the U.S. Congress to pass the legislation creating the park. Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden (1829-87) was an American geologist noted for his pioneering surveying expeditions of the Rocky Mountains in the late 19th century. He was also a physician who served with the Union Army during the Civil War.