1849 – Life & Travels in California & Oregon | Gold Rush, American Exploration

Thomas J Farnham was a 19th-century American explorer who found himself in the Midwest plains, the Oregon Trail, and California. In 1843, his fame began to rise with the release of his book Travels in the Great Western Prairies. He followed the success of that book with Travels in California which covered his exploration up and down the Pacific Coast – Rocky Mountain hiking, hunting, and gem mining. It should be noted that this work is one of the earliest printed works to provide descriptions of the California Gold Rush! Howes notes that this work was sequel to Western Prairies.

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Life, adventures, and travels in California : to which are added the Conquest of California, Travels in Oregon, and History of the gold regions
• Author(s): Thomas J. Farnham
• Publisher: New York, Published by Nafis & Cornish; St. Louis, Mo., Van Dien & MacDonald
• Edition: First Nafis edition, 1849.
• Binding: Hardcover with decorative gilt accents
• Format: (8vo), single volume
• Size:  9.5 in x 6.5 in (24 cm x 17 cm)
• Collation: iv, 468, [2] pp
• Illustrations: 48 illustrations
• Contents Include:
  • Travels in California
  • Conquest of California
  • Travels in Oregon
  • History of the gold regions
• Reference(s): Howes F 49; Graff 1294; Wagner Camp 107; Wheat 609; Cowan 83; Zamorano 80, no. 36

Condition:

Very Good. Hardcover binding tight and secure. Decorative gilt on front cover retained. Pages show light age toning throughout.

Why Collect This?

• Gold Rush era American travel narrative
• Includes early descriptions of California and gold regions
• First Nafis edition with 48 illustrations
• Covers Oregon and Pacific Coast exploration

Item Number: #50263