The United States Gazetteer: Containing an Authentic Description of the Several States Their Situation, Extent Boundaries, Soil, Produce, Climate, Population, Trade, and Manufactures. Together with the Extent Boundaries and Population of the Respective Counties. Also, an Exact Account of the Cities, Towns, Harbours, Rivers, Bays, Lakes, Mountains, &c.
Philadelphia: F. and R. Bailey, 1793. Very Good -. Item #29480
Philadelphia: Printed by F. and R. Bailey, at Yorick's-Head, No. 116, High Street, 1793. First Edition. 12mo (17cm.); full contemporary calf, remnants only of red spine label; vi,[294]pp. (text collated complete); 18 (of 19) engraved folding map plates. Lacking endpapers and large folding frontispiece map of the United States, title page separated but present, textblock exceedingly brittle and toned with horizontal closed tear to a few leaves affecting text without loss of meaning, extensive ownership notes throughout (see below), maps rather dampstained, else a Good to Very Good, pleasingly unsophisticated copy with compelling provenance.
Significant contribution to American census-taking, surveying, geography, and trade. The entries, organized alphabetically, provide details on population (each county includes the number of free citizens and enslaved persons); law and government; architecture; and topography. From a typical entry: Edgfield County, South Carolina, "is 34 miles in length, and 24 in breadth, and contains 9,670 free inhabitants, and 3,670 slaves. Nearly through the middle of this county, passes that belt of elevated land, which we have mentioned in general description of that state. It separates the waters of the Saluda river from Savannah. The lands in general are rich and well cultivated."
Provenance: Extra blank leaf bound in following the errata page bearing ownership inscription "Josiah Venable [b. 1775] His Book," below which he has recorded the births of his sons and daughters from 1804 to 1813. At an earlier date Venable had put this small volume to use as a shipboard journal, recording on the versos of the maps of Massachusetts and New York his seafaring adventures from 1798, when the United States and France were on the cusp of maritime warfare:
-"See fairing [?] taken by the French the 28 of July 1798."
-"The 16 of July our ship sprung a leek [sic] and heavy gale of wind wich lasted five days"
-"The 1 of august cast away with five Spanyards on [?] in a desart place relived the 16 from Port Laura."
-"20 of June we saled from Virginia to Saint Bartholomews fell in with havy gale of wind 28."
Perhaps the dampstaining to textblock a result of the heavy gales and leaks sprung shipboard?
EVANS 29476; SABIN 78331.
Price: $3,500.00