Shirley – Charlotte Brontë (Currer Bell) – 1850 | First Edition, First Printing (US)

First American edition of Shirley by Charlotte Brontë, issued under her pseudonym Currer Bell and published by Harper & Brothers in 1850. This edition was printed at the firm’s 82 Cliff Street headquarters, which served as their primary New York address until its destruction by fire in 1853. Released the same year as the British first, the American edition appeared as No. 132 in Harper’s Library of Select Novels series. This copy features the original publisher’s title page, typeset in double columns across large octavo format leaves, with no preliminary ads or engraved frontispiece.

Bound in quarter black leather with marbled boards and gilt spine titling, the volume aligns with documented binding variations used for Harper’s Select Novels in this period but could likely have been rebound at some point in the 19^th-century. Apart from wanting the initial 2 pages of advertisements this copy is textually complete. The volume includes a terminal 18-page advertisement section beginning with George Ticknor’s History of Spanish Literature. The collation reads [2], 5–206, 8, [10] pages. The verso of the title page remains blank. No preface or authorial commentary appears. This copy represents a confirmed first printing, issued prior to Harper & Brothers’ 1855 relocation to Pearl Street.

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Shirley. A Tale.
• Author(s): Charlotte Brontë (Pseudonym, Currer Bell)
• Publisher: New York: Harper & Brothers, 82 Cliff Street.
• Edition: First American Edition. First Printing. 1850.

• Harper’s Library of Select Novels series format (No. 132 printed originally on wrappers, removed during rebinding).
• Large octavo, approx. 9¼ × 6 inches (23.5 × 15 cm).
• Printed in double columns per page.
• November, 1849 printing (imprint dated 1850).
• No preliminary advertisements; text pages [3]–206; followed by an 18-page advertisement section starting with George Ticknor’s History of Spanish Literature.
• Title page dated 1850; credits Currer Bell and references “Author of ‘Jane Eyre.’”
• Publisher’s imprint reads: “Harper & Brothers, Publishers, 82 Cliff Street, New York, MDCCCL.”
• Blank verso of the title page; no illustration or separate preface.

• Format: Large octavo, single volume
• Binding: Quarter leather, gilt spine, marbled boards
• Size: ~ 9.25 in x 6 in (23.5 x 15 cm)
• Collation: [2], 5-206, 8, [10] pp
• Contents Include:
  • Full text of Shirley in double-column format
  • Rear 18-page publisher catalogue beginning with Ticknor’s History of Spanish Literature
• Reference(s): BAL 19354; Sadlier 348; Smith (Brontë) pp. 42–43; Wolff 828

Condition:

Very Good. Quarter leather with gilt-titled spine and marbled paper-covered boards. Marbled endpapers. Hinges solid. Mild foxing noted throughout, with moderate occurrence on preliminaries. Text complete and cleanly printed. No signatures or marks of ownership detected.

Why Collect This?

• True first American printing of Charlotte Brontë’s second novel
• Highly relevant for collectors of Brontë works, pseudonymous publications, or literary first editions
• Includes complete rear, 18-page Harper advertising catalogue