First edition of the quintessential American novel of boyhood, third printing, one of just 200 copies issued in the publisher’s deluxe three-quarter morocco binding.
Publisher and Year: Hartford: The American Publishing Company, 1876
Edition: First edition, third printing, in the publisher’s three-quarter morocco leather binding. As with the first printing, the title page is dated 1876, the copyright page 1875, and the terminal catalogue December 1st, 1876. However, the half-title and frontispiece are on the same leaf, all printed pages are on laid paper, and only folio xvi is numbered among the preliminaries, meeting BAL's points for the third printing. Like other Twain titles, Tom Sawyer could be ordered by customers in several binding styles: cloth ($2.75), cloth with gilt edges ($3.00), sheep ($3.25), three-quarter morocco ($4.25), and full morocco ($4.75). Across the first three printings, the publisher produced 7,431 in cloth, 1,500 in sheep, 200 in three-quarter morocco, and 0 in full morocco. (BAL 3369; Macdonnell, 1998; Publisher Prospectus)
Condition and Description: Octavo, publisher's original morocco leather over cloth binding, spine tooled in black and gilt, front board ruled in gilt, all edges gilt, plain endpapers, frontispiece and in-text illustrations by True Williams, 275 pp (+4 pp ads). Rubbing to leather and cloth. Gilt bright. Foredge cloth of front board worn through and exposed. Splitting to the front endpaper at the gutter, but the cover remains very firmly attached and the text block securely cased; rear hinge likewise sound with no separation. Binding a little shaken and over-opened in places, but secure, with all pages attached. Slight front-back lean when standing upright. Pencil inscription of Natalie (“Susanne”) Elwell (1913–2000) with address on the front free endpaper (circa 1923, per town records). On the following blank leaf appears the penciled name “J. A. Elwell”, likely her grandfather Joseph A. Elwell (1855-1936). No other writing or ownership markings. Scattering staining and thumbing to the pages. A sound copy in the scarce three-quarter morocco binding.
“Tom appeared on the sidewalk with a bucket of whitewash and a long-handled brush. He surveyed the fence, and all gladness left him and a deep melancholy settled down upon his spirit.”
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer was Twain’s first novel written entirely on his own, transforming his Hannibal boyhood into the archetype of American childhood. Mischief, freedom, and moral testing shape Tom’s adventures, from fence-painting and treasure-hunting to confronting fear and loyalty, capturing both the vitality of youth and the nostalgia of memory. Issued by subscription, it sold nearly 24,000 copies in its first year and steadily grew into a classic. Today it endures as one of the most beloved works of American literature, appearing on major “best of” surveys and consistently cited as a cornerstone of the national canon.
Inventory ID: 292 - 285 - 657
First edition of the quintessential American novel of boyhood, third printing, one of just 200 copies issued in the publisher’s deluxe three-quarter morocco binding.
Publisher and Year: Hartford: The American Publishing Company, 1876
Edition: First edition, third printing, in the publisher’s three-quarter morocco leather binding. As with the first printing, the title page is dated 1876, the copyright page 1875, and the terminal catalogue December 1st, 1876. However, the half-title and frontispiece are on the same leaf, all printed pages are on laid paper, and only folio xvi is numbered among the preliminaries, meeting BAL's points for the third printing. Like other Twain titles, Tom Sawyer could be ordered by customers in several binding styles: cloth ($2.75), cloth with gilt edges ($3.00), sheep ($3.25), three-quarter morocco ($4.25), and full morocco ($4.75). Across the first three printings, the publisher produced 7,431 in cloth, 1,500 in sheep, 200 in three-quarter morocco, and 0 in full morocco. (BAL 3369; Macdonnell, 1998; Publisher Prospectus)
Condition and Description: Octavo, publisher's original morocco leather over cloth binding, spine tooled in black and gilt, front board ruled in gilt, all edges gilt, plain endpapers, frontispiece and in-text illustrations by True Williams, 275 pp (+4 pp ads). Rubbing to leather and cloth. Gilt bright. Foredge cloth of front board worn through and exposed. Splitting to the front endpaper at the gutter, but the cover remains very firmly attached and the text block securely cased; rear hinge likewise sound with no separation. Binding a little shaken and over-opened in places, but secure, with all pages attached. Slight front-back lean when standing upright. Pencil inscription of Natalie (“Susanne”) Elwell (1913–2000) with address on the front free endpaper (circa 1923, per town records). On the following blank leaf appears the penciled name “J. A. Elwell”, likely her grandfather Joseph A. Elwell (1855-1936). No other writing or ownership markings. Scattering staining and thumbing to the pages. A sound copy in the scarce three-quarter morocco binding.
“Tom appeared on the sidewalk with a bucket of whitewash and a long-handled brush. He surveyed the fence, and all gladness left him and a deep melancholy settled down upon his spirit.”
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer was Twain’s first novel written entirely on his own, transforming his Hannibal boyhood into the archetype of American childhood. Mischief, freedom, and moral testing shape Tom’s adventures, from fence-painting and treasure-hunting to confronting fear and loyalty, capturing both the vitality of youth and the nostalgia of memory. Issued by subscription, it sold nearly 24,000 copies in its first year and steadily grew into a classic. Today it endures as one of the most beloved works of American literature, appearing on major “best of” surveys and consistently cited as a cornerstone of the national canon.
Inventory ID: 292 - 285 - 657
Image 1 of 23
Image 2 of 23
Image 3 of 23
Image 4 of 23
Image 5 of 23
Image 6 of 23
Image 7 of 23
Image 8 of 23
Image 9 of 23
Image 10 of 23
Image 11 of 23
Image 12 of 23
Image 13 of 23
Image 14 of 23
Image 15 of 23
Image 16 of 23
Image 17 of 23
Image 18 of 23
Image 19 of 23
Image 20 of 23
Image 21 of 23
Image 22 of 23
Image 23 of 23