Search Results: Authors starting with C from McBride Rare Books

Boston: Munroe y Francis, 1827. Very good.. 288pp. Original calf; rebacked with spine laid down. Some light foxing and soiling, light dampstaining to last few leaves. Some notes and annotations, particularly to endleaves. The first American printing of any of Cadalso's works. This edition was created specifically for American students, "con notas y acentos de prosodia, al uso de los estudiantes en las academias, colegios y universidades de los Estados Unidos de la America Setentrional." Sales was an instructor of French and Spanish at Harvard, and his edition has accents on the emphasized syllable of each word even is such accents are usually absent. Shoemaker 28356.

[Various locations in California, mostly Sausalito and other locations in Marin and Sonoma Counties, 1930. Very good.. Nine photograph albums in a variety of bindings, containing approximately 810 photographs, the great majority paper prints but with a fair share of tintypes and CDVs in the earliest two albums, plus 102 loose negatives, three negative rolls, and a metal container housing 135 later color slides. A phenomenal collection of photographs from noted but still somewhat obscure California artist, teacher, and amateur shutterfly Isabel Margaret Porter Collins. The collection numbers over 800 images ranging from early family images featuring dozens of Collins' antecedents from the 1870s to 1890s, personal albums featuring Collins with her family and friends in various locations in California over the course of about thirty years, and an album and some further images produced by Collins' son Henry Benjamin Collins, whom she called Ben. The collection was most likely retained by Ben. Isabel… Read More

[N.p., but California, 1934. Very good.. Broadside, approximately 11 x 5 inches. Previously folded. Minor wear and soiling. Scarce campaign literature in support of Frank Merriam but primarily against Upton Sinclair in the 1934 California gubernatorial election. Sinclair had formerly run for Congress as a Socialist, but won the Democratic nomination for this race, and although it was his most successful showing amongst his attempts to gain political office, he was still handily beaten by Merriam the Republican. Sinclair's platform during the race, End Poverty in California (EPIC), drew harsh criticism from conservatives as a Communist confiscation of private wealth, and grew more unpopular as migrants fleeing the Dust Bowl poured into California. The present broadside assails Sinclair's proposals for industry and agriculture in California, asserting that he will tax large farms and businesses out of existence, thereby losing the jobs of his putative working-class voters, and attacking his plan to… Read More

Sacramento City: March 26, 1850. Very good.. [4]pp., on a single folded folio sheet. Original mailing folds, minor foxing, short closed tear along fold line of second leaf, small remnant of wax seal on last page. An incredibly informative manuscript letter written by Henry Passe (or perhaps Pape or Pope), a hopeful prospector during the early months of the California Gold Rush, writing about mining and trade goods in "this far off land." Passe arrived at the gold mines in October 1849, and immediately took ill for three months. After his recovery, he reports on the early haulings from the "dry diggins" at the mines, "not to be as good as the Rivers," which were not terribly fruitful, between six and ten dollars a day. Passe then encapsulates the whole spirit of the Gold Rush in a few sentences: "It is very difficult setting average on mining; it is just as low as 4 & high as $10 a day; there is one thing that stimulates all, there is a chance of one's striking a rich hole from which he can take out… Read More

San Francisco: Bacon & Company, 1886. Good plus.. 64pp., plus two folding plates. Original printed wrappers. Spine and wrapper corners chipped; relatively sympathetic tape repairs to spine. Contemporary ownership inscription on front wrapper. Plates separating at folds. Even tanning, scattered foxing. Scarce, 1886 promotional pamphlet for San Joaquin County and its county seat of Stockton, "Addressed particularly to the stranger who wishes to know in what portion of California he may find combined those advantages in climate, location and soil, that would determine the fixing of his new home." The pamphlets contains two maps, one double-page color map of the county by soil type, chromolithographed by Britton and Rey, the other a folding map of rail routes and connections of the Sierra Nevada & San Joaquin Railroad. The verso of this plate depicts the county exhibit at the 1886 California State Fair. The text itself is quite extensive, with a focus soil and agriculture; numerous local advertisements… Read More

[N.p., but likely in or near San Mateo, Ca, 1950. Good.. Panoramic photograph, 8 x 52.25 inches. Moderate scuffing, soiling, some small creases, a few short closed tears, one repaired on verso, pinholes at corners and along edges. A wider-than-usual panoramic photograph capturing for posterity many of the commercial enterprises along Main Street in San Mateo, California in the mid-20th century. The unnamed photographer seems to have stood directly across from the Tecco Electric Construction Company and shot that side of Main Street from San Mateo Florist and Mohawk Gasoline to the left to well beyond the B.F. Goodrich on the right. Some of the other businesses include Sarganis Brothers Custom Interiors, Peninsula Wrought Iron Works, H.H. MacDonald Homes (offering houses in Glenwood Heights), Ferreira Paints, and L.K. Ward Home Appliances. A handful of blurry automobiles are pictured driving one way or another on the main thoroughfare. A wonderful snapshot of midcentury San Mateo that would make a… Read More

Coyoteville: September 12, 1855. Very good.. [2]pp., plus integral blank. Original mailing folds, moderate toning, staining, and ink spotting, but still easily readable. Bottom fourth of integral blank excised. An informative Gold Rush letter about mining in the long-vanished ghost town of Coyoteville, which was an extraordinarily rich gold area for a couple of years in the early 1850s. A noted tunneling method, nicknamed "coyoteing" was developed in the town, and subsequently inspired the name of the town. In the present letter, Moses Pine writes to "Catherine" in Branch County, Michigan, and signs his name simply as "Mose Esq" at the conclusion. The author informs Catherine, presumably his wife or sister, of his activities, some of the economic realities, and some of the practical details of prospecting for gold in California. Presuming that "it would be impossible for the whole of Branch County to raise $10 unless they sell a horse," Pine comments that he had ginger bread on the Fourth of July… Read More

[Belmont, Ca, 1947. Very good.. Sheet map, 11.25 x 15.25 inches. Previously folded. Light wear at folds. Light tanning. Scarce post-World War II street map of Belmont, California, south of San Francisco. The map depicts the layout of the area between San Mateo, San Carlos, and Hidden Canyon Park, and was issued for the use of a local insurance agent, Harry Walden ("When the subject of the conversation is Insurance, talk with Walden"). Provides a good delineation of a town on the San Francisco peninsula that numbered approximately 5,000 inhabitants after the end of the war, but today is home to over 25,000. Ephemeral, with no copies located by OCLC.

Los Angeles: Franklin P. Borgnis, 1923. Very good.. Folding map, 9.5 x 11.75 inches. Original printed wrappers. Very light wear to wraps. A couple of small separations along fold lines. A small but attractive double-sided folding map that depicts the street layout of Pasadena as well as well as the major motor routes in the Los Angeles region. The map of Pasadena is quite detailed, and delineates the principal roads of the city in red. It also provides a street index to the right of the map. The other side of the sheet prints a "Motor and Relief Map of Southern California," which provides a bird's-eye view of the region south of the San Gabriel Mountains as well as two small insets of the routes from San Diego to Los Angeles and Los Angeles to San Francisco. The map was distributed as a promotional by local branches of the Pacific-Southwest Trust & Savings Bank. We locate only one copy, at the Pasadena Public Library.

Woodland: C.P. Sprague & H.W. Atwell, 1870. About very good.. viii,602pp. plus folding map. Original marbled boards, rebacked and recornered in reverse calf with original gilt leather spine laid down. Light scuffing to boards. Light, vertical tide lines through leaves of center section; light tanning and scattered foxing. Map with small, unobtrusive tape repair at gutter margin and a couple of short separations along folds. The first general directory of Yolo County, the first Yolo County history, and one of the most comprehensive of all 19th-century California county guides and directories, only issued in a small number of copies to subscribers. The initial 200 pages comprise the extensive general history of the county, followed by the lengthy directory, which is separated into residential and business registers. The map is quite fascinating and shows the county split into townships, with its few towns, railroads and rivers delineated; it was drawn by Grafton Tyler Brown, the pioneering… Read More

Fresno: Kamiyama, 1954. Very good.. Panoramic photograph, 10 x 38 inches. Minor wear and occasional soft creasing. A substantial panoramic photograph depicting the somber scene of the funeral of Fresno resident Shigeki Yokota on September 8, 1954. A couple of hundred mourners pose for the camera at the corner of 9th and P streets in Fresno, with several wreaths of flowers flanking each side of Yokota's casket. Shigeki Yokota (1902-1954) was a Japanese-American doctor who moved his family to Fresno following the World War II internment period. Evidenced by the signature etched into the negative in the bottom left of the image, the photograph was produced by noted and prolific Fresno photographer Urasaburo "Frank" Kamiyama. Frank Kamiyama (1886-1974) was an important Japanese-American chronicler of his own community in Fresno and the surrounding area beginning in the early 20th century. He was arrested on March 27, 1942 as one of eight "named Japanese alien enemies" and interned at Angel Island in… Read More

[Various locations, including Texas and California, 1925. Very good.. [35] leaves, illustrated with 272 original vernacular photographs of various sizes, plus a handful of ephemeral items, all mounted. Oblong folio. Contemporary black cloth photograph album, gilt titles on front cover, string tied. Minor soiling, staining, and rubbing to boards, minor edge wear. An artfully-composed annotated vernacular photograph album documenting the life of a female compiler and her family in Texas and California over about a decade after World War I. The album opens with a few dozen scenes on the Los Rados and Cheyenne pastures of the Q Ranch and in the relevant residences in Channing, Texas. The Q Ranch scenes feature cowboys on horseback, horse-drawn carriages, scenes of cattle rustling, and more. The album compiler was most likely a woman living for some time at the Q Ranch; she notes on more than one occasion when people are leaving the ranch for more western locations. For instance, in May 1919, the… Read More

Secret Ravine, Ca, 1857. Very good.. Four autograph letters, signed, totaling [8]pp., on differently-sized writing papers. Old folds, minor wear, toning, and dust-soiling. A collection of four informative manuscript letters written by J. Gilbert Paddleford, a struggling miner working in Secret Ravine, California during the Gold Rush. Secret Ravine was a hotbed of placer mining activity during the Gold Rush, though apparently less so by the time Paddleford set up there. Paddleford writes these four letters to his brother, Curtis and his sister, Ruth, over the course of four months, between December 2, 1856 and April 29, 1857. Paddleford discusses challenges and activities pertaining to his mining efforts, as well as discussing homefront matters such as romantic prospects for himself and his sister, inquiring about various family members, writing about his reticence to settle anywhere, and so forth. In his first letter, Paddleford discusses the impact of the weather and the lack of water on his… Read More

San Francisco: Tourist Association of Central California, 1915. Very good.. 64pp. Original printed wrappers, stapled. Small chip to lower corner of front wrap. Internally clean. An uncommon guide to potential automobile excursions from the Bay Area, published for visitors to the Panama-Pacific International Exposition held in San Francisco during 1915. The text describes over twenty routes and the attractions to be enjoyed along them, and is accompanied by maps for each tour and numerous halftone illustrations of motorists exploring the California countryside in their cars. Fewer than ten copies in OCLC, mostly in California institutions.

Los Angeles: M. Reider, 1903. About very good.. [18]pp., accordion folded in nine panel. Original purple printed wrappers. Light wear to wrappers. Some wear at accordion folds; some separation along two folds, with one unobtrusive tape repair. Light toning. Handsome and scarce early 20th-century viewbook for Long Beach, California. The principal images are two striking panoramas, one of the beach and boardwalk on a busy summer day and the other of Long Beach Park being enjoyed by several women at leisure. Other views include portraits of fishermen, bathers, and beachgoers, and images of local architecture and geographical features. We locate only two copies -- at UC Irvine and UC San Diego.

Oakland: Howe Print Company, 1895. Still very good.. 43pp. Original printed wrappers, stapled. Light wear and dust soiling to wraps, heaving along spine and at staples points. Paper somewhat browned, but sturdy. A scarce anti-everything screed by late 19th-century Oakland politician and crank, John H. Fones. In the present work, financial policy is the principal target, as Fones dedicates individual sections of this tirade to his anti-bank, anti-debt, anti-gold, anti-greenback, and anti-tariff agenda -- "Money has a legal but no intrinsic value." Nevertheless, he also reserves space to attack the character of both major political parties, contemporary school and college curricula, and religious organizations, "one of the greatest obstacles in the way of good government." The only solution, according to Fones, is government entirely by referendum, with members of the People's Party elected to enact the stated will of the people. An 1896 article in the San Francisco Chronicle characterized Fones as,… Read More

San Francisco: Fred S. Bain, Inc, 1922. Very good.. Folding map, approximately 13 x 17 inches. Light wear along folds. Minor staining and dust soiling. A neat promotional map of early-1920s Los Angeles, distributed by the Security Trust & Savings Bank. The reverse of the map carries a detailed street index as well as lists of hotels, railroad offices, and other significant municipal and commercial buildings. The map itself delineates Los Angeles from Hollywood and Highland Park in the north to Huntington Park in the south. Attached is a volvelle indicator which can be used to locate streets on the map in conjunction with the index. A second map, oriented along the left edge of the sheet, shows the major rails and roads of greater Los Angeles, from Santa Monica and San Pedro to San Bernardino and Riverside.

San Francisco, 1863. Very good.. Six issues, each 8pp. Folio, on single folded sheets of newsprint. One issue separated along spine, minor foxing, creasing, and edge wear. A small collection of early issues of a notable scientific journal published in San Francisco beginning in 1860; the present issues were all issued during the opening years of the Civil War. The issues present here include Vol. V, No. 5 (April 9, 1862); Vol. V, No. 13 (June 9, 1862); Vol. V, No. 16 (July 2, 1862); Vol. V, No. 21 (August 8, 1862); Vol. VI, No. 4 (November 8, 1862); and Vol. VI, No. 38 (July 20, 1863). The articles present a wide range of scientific subjects, such as mining news, new inventions, lectures, extracts from scientific publications, metallurgy, balloon ascensions, patents, and more. Illustrations in the present issues include a map of Sinaloa, Heath's Spiral Spice Mill (and various other machines), the Coffey & Risdon Boiler Factory, and sectional illustrations of the Colorado River, among others. There… Read More

[N.p., likely San Francisco, 1853. Very good.. Broadside, 11.5 x 9.25 inches, with integral blank. Some toning and dust soiling, a bit heavier at top edge, a few very short tears and wear to the edges. An uncommon version of this notable California letter sheet, printing "The Miner's Ten Commandments" in three columns on the verso of the last page of a single folded sheet. It is similar to Baird 167 and Clifford 180, but does not have the eleven vignettes printed in the blank margins surrounding the text, suggesting that it is some form of proof printing or perhaps a piracy. The text prints the same series of ten commandments written by James M. Hutchings, which were designed to be followed by roughnecks while working at the mines in California during the Gold Rush. These include "Thou shalt have no other claim than one," "Thou shalt not go prospecting before thy claim gives out," "Thou shalt not steal a pick, or a shovel, or a pan, from thy fellow miner," "Thou shalt not tell any false tales about… Read More

Santa Barbara: N.H. Reed, 1906. Good.. [17] leaves. Oblong 12mo. Original pictorial wrappers, string-tied. Wrappers heavily chipped at edges, some light soiling. Minor soiling to edges of a few leaves. A handsome viewbook of Santa Barbara featuring gravure views of the mission, hotels, and local sights. One image features Teddy Roosevelt visiting the mission; other images depict waves crashing at high tide, the home of the first governors of California, and the Plaza del Mar. An advertisement by the publisher on the title page notes, "The pictures in this book, with hundreds of others, are made in Platinum in large sizes for framing at 927 State Street, Santa Barbara." We locate a single copy in OCLC, at the Huntington Library.