Books and Manuscripts

(Johnson, Richard)
The History of North America. Containing. A Review of the Customs and Manners of the Original Inhabitants; The first Settlement of the British Colonies, Their Rise and Progress, From The earliest Period to the Time of their becoming United, free and independent States By the Rev. Mr. Cooper
Bennington: [Vermont:] Printed by Anthony Haswell, for Thomas Spencer, of Albany, 1793. First American edition. 12mo. (x), (13)-184 pp.; second leaf of Contents misbound at front. Illustrated with an engraved frontispiece and five engraved plates. Modern three-quarter brown calf over marbled paper-covered boards, red calf spine label, stamped in blind and in gilt; contemporary ownership inscription on verso of frontispiece, “Steal not this Book for fear of Shame for under neath is the owne(rs) name”, same inscription repeated on recto of rear blank; inscription in same hand on verso of rear blank, “Leurendus B Smith my property if I it loose and you it find restore it me for it is mine”; bottom corner of frontispiece repaired, just touching engraving; scattered wear and soiling to text and plates; scattered wear along extremities of text; short closed tear in fore-edge, pp. 103/104, 159/160. Evans 25347; Howes C-761; ESTC W18128; Rosenbach 188 (second edition)

Scarce first American edition of this juvenile on the history of North America and the American Revolution. Featuring illustrations of the Boston Tea Party, Battle of Bunker Hill, Death of General Montgomery, and others. Authorship of this volume was contested, as the “Rev. Mr. Cooper”, was attributed by Howes as Rev. William Cooper, while Rosenbach noted that, “the identity of the author…is somewhat obscure,” and listed possibilities as Rev. Samuel Cooper, Rev. W.D. Cooper, and Rev. Charles Cooper. Evans notes that M.J.P Weedon attributed authorship to a Richard Johnson in his "Richard Johnson and the successors to John Newbery." (Fifth series, v. 4, 1949, pp. 25-63), which has now been accepted. Johnson (1733/34-93), active in the late 18th century, adapted numerous stories for children, including the Thousand and One Nights, Gulliver’s Travels, and others, and originally wrote the text of this volume for the first edition for Elizabeth Newberry, in London, in 1789. A companion volume, The History of South America, was also published in London, in 1789, and in Bennington, in 1793.

ESTC lists only five institutions with this edition, and this is only the second copy we can locate at auction in the past 20 years.