Search Results: Exploration / Travel / Adventure from CraigsClassics

"AFRICAN HUNTING from Natal to the Zambesi - Including Lake Ngami, the Kalahari Desert, &c. from 1852 to 1860" by William Charles Baldwin. 1863 1st edition (with no edition designation on the title page); Richard Bentley; London. All 40 indexed illustrations are present with additional un-indexed plates. There is also a fold-out map of South Africa at the front. Scarce, true first edition in original publisher's cloth binding. Here are some examples of the contents: Hunting Expedition into the Zulu Country; The Transvall Republic; The Boers; I am Deserted; Sechele's Daughter; The Bush on Fire; Merico; Anecdotes of Crossing the Tugela; Result of a Zebra Hunt; Elephant Hunt; The Zambesi Falls; Meet with Dr. Livingstone; Intense Heat; Adventure with a Lion; Accident to Englishmen; Return to Natal...and more. There is an Index and a 32-page publisher's catalog at the back.Condition:Cloth tears at the bottom 2 cover corners; small cloth tears at the top and bottom edges of the spine. Tight binding with no… Read More

This is a great condition copy of "ALASKA ~ 1899 ~ Copper River Exploring Expedition" by W.R. Abercrombie. 1900; Government Printing Office; Washington D.C. The book is profusely illustrated with dozens of black & white photographs and a large fold-out map of the "Trans-Alaskan Military Road" at the back. The book is a report of the "construction work on the trans-Alaskan military road and explorations in the Chettyna Valley during the season of 1899, which embraces the operations of the expedition under the command of Captain Abercrombie."Here are a few examples of the contents (please see the photos for the complete list): Selection of skilled men for trail crew; How the expedition was outfitted; The dreaded scourge of scurvy; A thrilling description of a 'glacial demon' by a crazed Swede; The hospitality of Alaskan Indians illustrated; How destitute miners and prospectors were relieved; How the liquor traffic was throttled at Valdez; Establishment of an American postal service; Animals best adapted… Read More

This is an antique "ALBUM OF IRELAND" containing 53 illustrated views. Circa 1890's - there is no date of publication stated, but the first view has an inscription in pen dated 1890. Published by W. Lawrence in Dublin, Ireland. "Accordion" style - the views are attached end-to-end and fold neatly within the covers. Views include Sackville Street, O'Connell Monument, Trinity College, The Chapel Royal, The Phoenix Park, Four Courts, St. Patrick's Cathedral, Christ Church, Patrick Street, Blarney Castle, Queenstown, Castles, Fish Market, Royal Avenue, Queens College, Londonderry...and many more.

Condition:
There are a couple of light smudges at the right edge of the front cover; clean back cover. The views are in nice condition - clean with only a few random, light smudges and an inscription written in pen dated 1890 on the 1st panel. One of the folds near the center has a 1.5" separation at both the top and bottom edges. There is a crack at the rear hinge at the left edge of the pastedown next to the… Read More

This is a rare issue of the publication "The Analectic Magazine and Naval Chronicle" from April, 1816. This issue features an early (possibly the 1st) published engraving of the famous American explorer MERIWETHER LEWIS (of "Lewis and Clark" fame). In addition to the engraving, the issue also includes a chapter titled "Notice of Captain M. Lewis" - from the Notice: "The portrait of captain Lewis, given in the present number, is taken from a drawing of that officer belonging to his fellow traveller, governor Clark, who considers it an excellent likeness, and prizes it highly. The gentleman who lent it to us remained here but a short time, and was obliged to take it with him: to which circumstance it is owing that our engraving from it is not executed in so good a style as we could have wished. But that engraving is a faithful copy of the original, which is believed to the the only likeness of captain Lewis now extant. The ornaments worn by him when in the costume of an Indian warrior, (as represented… Read More

"An Arctic Boat Journey in the Autumn of 1854" by Isaac Hayes (surgeon of the second Grinnell expedition). 1860 1st American edition in publisher's original cloth binding; Brown, Taggard and Chase; Boston. At the front of the book is a large fold-out map titled "A Chart of the Arctic Regions." (The Baffin Bay map is not present.) The book chronicles the second Grinnell expedition by the ship "Advance" under the command of Elisha Kent Kane in search of Sir John Franklin's lost expedition.Here are a few examples of the contents: Intercourse with the Esquimaux; Shooting ducks; A gloomy night; Ice all around; At sea in a snow-storm; Camp on an ice-raft; Blowing hard and drifting; Moss food; Roasted coffee gives out; A day of unmitigated misery; The hut imbedded in snow; Tunnelling the snow-drift to get out; Fierceness of dogs; A two-weeks' famine; Reading anatomy; The savage Sip-su; Conspiracy discovered; The witch-wife; Astronomical fables; Drugged with opium; Walrus hide for food; The popular idea of… Read More

This is a nicely bound antique book of exploration, "Around the Caribbean & Across Panama" by Francis C. Nicholas. 1903 1st edition; H.M. Caldwell Company; Boston and New York. Nicely illustrated with "numerous maps and half-tones from rare photographs." Gilt top page edges.The contents are as follows: Going South; Camping on the Coast of Spanish Honduras; Indians and Mosquitoes; Wild Animals and a Panther at Night; Alone in an Indian Village; A Startling Proposition and a Heavy Flood; A Row in Camp; Alone with the Indians Again; Over the Mountains with Indian Murderers; Treachery and Poison; Perplexities and Spanish-American Hospitality; Examining a Mine under Difficulties; Over the Mountains on a Race against Time; A Rough Journey to the Coast; Honduras to Costa Rica via New Orleans; The Death Dance of the Talamanca Indians; Up the Atrato River in Colombia; The Wilderness of the Choco Country; A Canoe Route from the Caribbean to the Pacific; Across Panama; The Indians and Resources of Panama; Panama… Read More

This is a terrific condition, vintage "BAY CIRCUIT MAP" of Boston and surrounding towns in color. Also included is the original storage envelope. Published in 1930 by The Trustees of Public Reservations in Boston, Massachusetts. The map specifically highlights "Points of Geological Interest in the Bay Circuit," "Points of Ornithological Interest in the Bay Circuit," and "Points of Historical and Antiquarian Interest in the Bay City Circuit." The map is large - it measures 36" tall x 26" wide.Condition:The map is in Fine condition with no issues found - it appears as-new. The storage envelope has a bit of light soiling on the covers.

This is a very clean copy of "BIBLE LANDS ILLUSTRATED" - A Pictorial Handbook of the Antiquities and Modern Life of All the Sacred Countries by Henry Fish. 1876; American Publishing Company; Hartford, CT. The book is profusely illustrated with 600 engravings and maps. Gilt all edges. With "one thousand elucidated scripture texts, and two thousand indexed subjects." Please see the photos for the complete list of contents. From the Preface:"A working book on the Bible Lands has long been wanted. Sunday-School teachers have wanted it; pastors and intelligent laymen have wanted it; families and children have wanted it. Books on the East abound; but they are either too voluminous and diffusive, or too limited to be of the widest utility. A convenient volume for ready reference to such places, things, events, customs and practices in the several Scripture countries as shall help to make intelligible and vivid Divine truth, must be admitted to be a felt need."Condition:Clean covers with no stains; the maroon… Read More

This is a collection of two books by ELIZABETH B. CUSTER (wife of General George Custer), as follows:"FOLLOWING THE GUIDON" - 1890 1st edition; Harper & Brothers; New York. The book features numerous full-page illustrations, as well as musical scores. There are two pages of publisher's advertisements at the back. From a review: "(The book) is a warmly human, first-hand account of the hardships, disappointments, fun and flattery, joys, and heartaches of General Custer's devoted wife, who accompanied her military husband to the (then) desolate plains of Kansas & Nebraska during 1868-1870, to combat the Plains Indian uprisings following the end of the American Civil War.""BOOTS AND SADDLES or, Life in Dakota with General Custer" - 1885 presumed 2nd state (this edition does not contain the map preceding chapter one); Harper & Brothers; New York. The book features a frontispiece portrait of General Custer. From a review: "Boots and Saddles offers a gentle, loving portrait of George Armstrong Custer,… Read More

This is a collection of two books by ELIZABETH B. CUSTER (wife of General George Custer), as follows:"FOLLOWING THE GUIDON" - 1890 1st edition; Harper & Brothers; New York. The book features numerous full-page illustrations, as well as musical scores. There are two pages of publisher's advertisements at the back. From a review: "(The book) is a warmly human, first-hand account of the hardships, disappointments, fun and flattery, joys, and heartaches of General Custer's devoted wife, who accompanied her military husband to the (then) desolate plains of Kansas & Nebraska during 1868-1870, to combat the Plains Indian uprisings following the end of the American Civil War.""BOOTS AND SADDLES or, Life in Dakota with General Custer" - 1885 1st edition; Harper & Brothers; New York. The book features a frontispiece portrait of General Custer and an "Outline Map of Portions of Montana & Dakota." From a review: "Boots and Saddles offers a gentle, loving portrait of George Armstrong Custer, husband and man, by… Read More

This is an antique travelogue, "THE BUDGET CLOSED" by Jane Anthony Eames (an extensive traveler in Europe and the east). 1860 1st edition; Ticknor and Fields; Boston. The book is a collection of Eames's letters from her travels. Here are a few examples of the contents: Departure from Smyrna; Crowded Steamboat; Over to Constantinople; Queen's Birthday; The Sultan; Review of English Troops; Visit to the Mosques; Sweet Waters of Asia; American Missionaries; Forest of Belgrade; Shopping in Pera; Garden of the Russian Embassy; Turkish Bath; Quarantine; Ruins of Greece; Parthenon by Moonlight; View from the Acropolis; Prison of Socrates; Prisoners; Cholera at the Piraeus; Greek Costume; Ionian Islands; Arrival at Vienna; Up the Danube; Salt Bath; Tomb of Maximilian I; Crystal Palace; Romish Churches; Japanese Palace; Obelisk; Monument of Frederick the Great; Berlin Iron; Sculpture Gallery; Zoological Collection; Louisa of Prussia; Hessian Troops; Royal Library; Church of Notre Dame; Funeral Ceremony; Last… Read More

This is an antique copy of "The California and Oregon Trail" - Being Sketches of Prairie and Rocky Mountain Life by FRANCIS PARKMAN. Circa 1890's (there is no date of publication stated); William L. Allison Company; New York. Nicely bound in three-quarter blue leather with marbled covers, gilt lettering and decorations on the spine, and gilt top page edges. Please see the photos for the complete list of contents.From the introductory note: "The journey which the following narrative describes was undertaken on the writer's part with a view of studying the manners and character of Indians in their primitive state. Although, in the chapters which relate to them, he has only attempted to sketch those features of their wild and picturesque life which fell, in the present instance, under his own eye, yet in doing so he has constantly aimed to leave an impression of their character correct as far as it goes. In justifying his claim to accuracy on this point, it is hardly necessary to advert to the… Read More

Nice condition vintage copy of "The Call of the Wild" by JACK LONDON. 1982; The Franklin Library; Pennsylvania. This edition features numerous black & white illustrations by William Harmuth. Nicely bound in faux leather with gilt page edges on all sides of the text block, four raised bands on the spine, and decorative end papers.Condition:There is a thin, very light 1" scuff near the bottom edge of the front cover. Tight binding with no cracks and no loose pages. Nice interior - the pages are clean and appear unread with only some very light foxing to the first couple and last couple pages. Overall the book is in Very Good+ condition.

Antique copy of "Cape Cod" by HENRY DAVID THOREAU. 1886; Houghton, Mifflin, Co.; Boston. A portrait of Thoreau has been affixed to the front pastedown. Gilt top page edges. There is a 13-page publisher's catalog at the back.Condition:There are a couple small, shallow dents at the right edge of the front cover. Small cloth tears at the top and bottom edges of the spine. Tight binding with no cracks and no loose pages. Nice interior - the pages are clean and nearly appear unread with no notable issues found. A portrait of Thoreau has been affixed to the front pastedown. Overall the book is in Very Good- condition.

This is a wonderful look at Chicago at the turn of the century, "CHICAGO ALBUM" containing 79 Albertype views of the city. Circa 1890's (there is no date of publications stated). Published by Chisholm Brothers in Portland, Maine. Nicely decorated gilt front cover. There are 24 pages attached accordion-style comprised of 79 individual views from photographs. The album measures 9 1/2" wide x 6 1/4" tall. There is an amazing panoramic two-page view at the front. Here are examples of sites and landmarks: Post Office & Custom House; Grand Pacific Hotel; Auditorium Hall; First National Bank; Central Music Hall, Marshall Field & Co.; Wells St. Bridge; Grand Central Station; The Masonic Temple; North Side Water Works; Libby Prison and Museum; Cook County Hospital; Yachting on Lake Michigan; Jefferson Park; The Elephant; Drexel Boulevard; Lincoln Park; Boating on the Lake; Union Park Fountain; Union Stock Yards & Stalls; Douglass Monument; Garfield Park; Birds Eye View of Pullman...and much more.Condition:Some… Read More

Nice condition copy of "ENGLISH SEAMEN of the Sixteenth Century" - Lectures Delivered at Oxford Easter Terms, 1893-4 by James Anthony Froude. 1895 1st edition; Charles Scribner's Sons; New York. Gilt top page edges. Here are a few examples of the contents - Drake's Voyage Round the World; John Hawking and the African Slave Trade; The Great Expedition to the West Indies; Sailing on the Armada, and more...please see the photos for the complete list.Condition:Clean front cover; thin 2" stain line at the bottom edge of the spine; there are 2 very light, dime-sized stain spots on the back cover; sharp corners. Tight binding with no cracks and no loose pages. Bright gilt top page edges. Nice interior - the pages are clean and nearly appear unread with only a tear to the lower-outer corner tip of page 79. Overall the book is in Very Good+ condition.

This is a great condition historical fiction book, "A Family Flight Around Home" by E.E. Hale and Miss Susan Hale. Circa 1890's (there is no date of publication stated, but there is an inscription at the front dated 1891); D. Lothrop Company; Boston. Richly illustrated with drawings throughout, many of which are full-page. The "Family Flight" series was an effort by the publisher to compete with the 'Zig Zag Series.' Lothrop's advertisements stated: "The narrative is told succinctly and with animation." In a similar fashion to other travelogue books of the era, there are numerous sketches and woodcuts throughout the book. The book follows the adventures of the Horner Family "around home" - the northeastern corridor of the United States. Chapters include "Washington's Inauguration," "Pirates," "The War," "The Declaration of Independence," "About Indians," "Franklin and Lafayette," "The First Day in Boston."Condition:Clean covers and spine; tiny cloth tear at the top-left corner of the back cover. Tight… Read More

"FARTHEST NORTH - Being the Record of a Voyage of Exploration of the Ship 'Fram' 1893-96 and of a Fifteen Months' Sleigh Journey by Dr. Nansen and Lieut. Johansen" by Fridtjof Nansen. 1897 1st edition; Archibald Constable and Company; Westminster, UK. Complete set in two volumes. A custom slip case has been made to house the volumes. The set is rchly illustrated with "about 120 full page and numerous text illustrations" as well as 16 color plates "in facsimile from Dr. Nansen's own sketches." There are also photogravures, two folding color maps at the back of each volume (four color maps total), and an "etched portrait" frontispiece of Nansen in volume I. All folding maps are present and securely attached; all color plates are present. Also included is an Appendix by Otto Sverdrup, Captain of the 'Fram.' Each volume comes with a clear, protective sleeve over the covers. Found within the pages was an original order form for the book "Ice-Bound on Kolguev" from the same publisher.The contents are as… Read More

This is an early copy of "The Foreign Tour of Messrs. Brown, Jones and Robinson - Being the History of What They Saw, and Did, in Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, & Italy" beautifully illustrated by RICHARD DOYLE. 1855 (published one year after the 1854 1st edition); Bradbury & Evans; London. The book features illustrations on every other page (some of which are full-page) by Doyle. Three-quarter leather bound with five raised bands on the spine. The book is a humorous 19th century fictional travelogue about an excursion through Europe.Condition:Wear to the leather at the bottom-right corner of the front cover; worn corners (the tips of the boards are exposed); some fading of the blue cloth on the back cover; some wear to the leather along the left and right edges of the spine. Tight binding with no loose pages. There are insignificant cracks at the front and rear hinges between the end papers and pastedowns (despite the cracks, both covers are firmly attached and are not at all shaky). Nice condition… Read More

This is a bound volume of "HARPER'S ROUND TABLE - 1897" containing 52 consecutive issues from November, 1896 to October, 1897. Published by Harper & Brothers in New York. Per the masthead, content includes Athletics, Literature, Science, Travel and Sport. The issues are profusely illustrated with photographs, illustrations, maps and cartoons; there are also a couple of full-page color plates.The highlight of the volume is the 1st appearance of 6 articles (all are illustrated) written by THEODORE ROOSEVELT which were later collected in his book, "Good Hunting - In the Pursuit of Big Game in the West," which details turn-of-the century America's rugged wilderness:* A Christmas Buck (January 19, 1897)* The Timber Wolf (April 27, 1897)* A Tame White Goat (May 25, 1897)* A Cattle-Killing Bear (June 22, 1897)* Shooting the Prong-Buck (July 27, 1897)* The Wapati, or Round-Horned Elk (August 31, 1897)Another highlight of the volume is early BASEBALL content (with photographs and illustrations):* "A Study in… Read More