Narrative of Nicholas "Cheyenne" Dawson (Overland to California in '41 & '49, and Texas in '51); Number Seven of the Rare Americana Series Printed & Published by The Grabhorn Press of San Francisco in May, 1933

San Francisco: The Grabhorn Press, 1933. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Fine/very good. Parker, Arvilla. One of 500 copies, quarto size, 107 pp., with note to Subscribers and original mailing label. Nicholas Dawson (1819-1903), the partly self-educated schoolteacher infected with wanderlust, spent much of his life travelling on foot across America. His wanderings brought him through Missouri, Louisiana, and Arkansas to Mexico, then back to New Orleans; he returned to the West infected with Gold Fever, and then eventually settled in Texas.

The original publication of his memoirs is incredibly scarce; this edition was published by the Grabhorn (truncated) Press, one of the most highly renowned private presses in America during the twentieth century, run by brothers Edwin and Robert Grabhorn.

This copy with the original (plain) dust jacket, the note to Subscribers regarding "the important announcement about the next series to be printed and published by the Grabhorn Press", and the original mailing label with the purchaser's name and address typed onto the label printed with this books' title and the Rare Americana Series number.

___DESCRIPTION: Quarter natural linen with brown paper boards, coloured vignette illustration on the front board, black lettering running vertically on the front and back boards, brown paper spine label with black lettering, title page and caption titles printed in red and black, nine coloured illustrations by Arvilla Parker; hand-set in Goudy Modern on Van Gelder rough-cut paper, binding quarto size (10" by 6 3/4"), pagination: [i-iv] 1-100 [101-107], one of 500 copies, unnumbered. One of the Fifty Books of the Year, 1933, First Series of Rare Americana, No. 7. In the original plain brown dust wrapper, loosely laid in is the note to Subscribers, a single sheet folded once to four pages with printing on the front (page 1) and page 3 only (8 3/4" by 6"), and the original mailing label of yellow paper printed with the title and a small vignette in black.

___CONDITION: Volume fine, the spine clean and unrubbed, the spine label clean and without wear, clean boards, straight corners without rubbing, a strong, square text block with solid hinges, the interior is clean and bright, and entirely free of prior owner markings; a few spots of foxing to the top of the text block, age-toning to the free endpapers, and offsetting to the front free endpaper (from the note and label having been laid in); even with its few very minor faults, still a fine copy overall. The dust jacket is very good, clean, with overall wear; the Subscribers note fine overall, clean and without wear, with light toning on the back (blank) page; the address label very good, with very light soil on the front and a few spots of the adhesive on the back.

___CITATION: Grabhorn Press bibliography, no. 184.

___POSTAGE: International customers, please note that additional postage may apply as the standard does not always cover costs; please inquire for details.

___Swan's Fine Books is pleased to be a member of the ABAA, ILAB, and IOBA and we stand behind every book we sell. Please contact us with any questions you may have, we are here to help. (Inventory #: 20091206)