Picturesque America; or, The land we live in. A delineation by pen and pencil [...].

2 vol., folio: viii-568, vi-576 pp. (some min. dampstaining towards the gutter of the 2nd vol., some min. dampstaining on the lower margins of the 1st vol.).

Contemp. embossed brown shagreen, gilt title and decoration on front covers (corners bumped and rubbed, covers rubbed, lower cover 2nd vol. partly detached), spines with 4 raised bands (rubbed), gilt inside dentelles, marbled endpapers, a.e.g.

A splendid travel guide describing and illustrating the outdoor attractions and scenery of the greater part of the North American continent by W.C. Bryant, who was a well-known poet, journalist and long-time editor of the New York Evening Post. First published in parts as a magazine series in Appleton's Journal. Ill. with 49 steel engravings (including 2 front. and 2 titles) by H. Fenn, G. Perkins, R. Swain Gifford, A.R. Waud, T. Moran, A.S. Hazeltine, W.L. Sheppard, J.A. Suydam, etc. The plates portray the great mountain ranges, lakes, valleys, grand primitive forests, waterfalls, magnificent rivers, towns and cities, in brief, all the picturesque aspects from Canada to the Gulf, from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The work had a profound influence on the growth of tourism and on the historic preservation movement in the United States.
Ref. Sabin 62692. - COPAC. - BnF.