Bancroft’s History of the United States — 1886

📖 Bancroft’s History of the Colonization of the United States by George Bancroft (1886, Julius Hart & Company, New York) — an abridged single-volume edition of the first three volumes of Bancroft’s monumental ten-volume history of the United States, covering the period from early voyages of discovery through the founding of the American republic. This copy is bound in decorative Victorian blue cloth with black-stamped illustrations and gilt accents.

QUICK FACTS

• Author: George Bancroft (1800–1891), American historian and statesman
• Publisher: Julius Hart & Company, New York
• Year: 1886 (abridged from the original 1834–1840 edition)
• Format: Hardcover, two volumes bound in one
• Pages: Not numbered | ISBN: None (pre-ISBN era)
• Condition: Good (G)/Good+ (G+) — full report below

THE STORY

George Bancroft (1800–1891) is widely regarded as the “father of American history.” His comprehensive ten-volume History of the United States, from the Discovery of the American Continent, first published between 1834 and 1840, was the first major scholarly history of the United States and set the standard for American historical writing for decades. Bancroft was also a statesman — as Secretary of the Navy, he established the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, and he served as American diplomat to both Britain and Germany.

THIS EDITION

This 1886 single-volume abridgment compresses the first three volumes of Bancroft’s original work into a more accessible format, as abridged by the author himself. First published in two volumes in 1841, this Julius Hart & Company edition combines them into one. The content covers the earliest European voyages of discovery — including the Cabots, Verrazzani, and Cartier — through the Spanish expeditions of De Soto, the French and Spanish colonization of Florida, and England’s preparations to colonize North America, including Raleigh, Gilbert, and the founding of Virginia.

COVER ART & ILLUSTRATIONS

The binding is a striking deep blue Victorian cloth with intricate embossed and black-stamped decorative elements. The front cover features a detailed historical scene with Native Americans, tepees, sailing ships, and European explorers, along with a gilt medallion bearing the Latin words “LIBERTAS” and “JUSTITIA” (Liberty and Justice) around an allegorical female figure. The spine carries gold foil text — “BANCROFT’S HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES, ILLUSTRATED” — topped by five small stars and a gold medallion depicting a profile bust wearing a laurel wreath with the word “LIBERTY.” The spine also bears “JULIUS H. SEARS” at the base, likely a bookseller or distributor.

The volume contains full-page woodcut engravings throughout, including a Pocahontas portrait frontispiece (by J.W.F.), “The Landing of the Pilgrims,” and “Trapping” by Hickok & Graff. The endpapers feature a repeating floral and botanical pattern in muted gold and olive tones. A detailed table of contents organizes the text into chapters covering Early Voyages, French Settlements, the Expedition of Ferdinand De Soto, Colonization of Florida, and England’s Preparations to Colonize the United States.

WHY IT MATTERS

• Bancroft’s History of the United States was the definitive scholarly account of early America for much of the nineteenth century, and shaped how generations of Americans understood their national origins
• The abridged edition represents Bancroft’s own effort to make his magnum opus accessible to a wider audience — the author personally selected and condensed the material
• The decorative Victorian binding with Latin allegorical medallions and black-stamped historical scenes reflects the era’s taste for ornate, didactic book design
• Julius Hart & Company was a New York publisher active in the 1880s–1890s, known for reissuing classic historical and literary works in affordable, well-produced editions

FREQUENTLY ASKED

What edition is this? This is the 1886 Julius Hart & Company abridgment of Bancroft’s original work, with the author’s own abridgement. Two volumes are bound in one. A pencil ownership signature of “Robert E. Austin” appears on the preliminary blank page.

What condition is it in? Good/Good+ — decorative blue cloth with edge wear and spine fraying, inner hinges split at front and rear (binding remains intact), age-toned pages throughout, frontispiece and title page have significant creasing. Full report below.

Is this a first edition? No — the abridged version was first published in 1841. This is an 1886 reprint by Julius Hart & Company.

FOR COLLECTORS

This is a handsome example of Victorian-era American book production — the combination of Bancroft’s authoritative text with decorative cloth binding and period engravings makes it a desirable piece for collectors of nineteenth-century American history and decorative Victorian bindings. The “LIBERTAS” and “JUSTITIA” medallion on the cover is a distinctive design element not commonly found on standard reprints of the period.

Book Details

Author: George Bancroft
Illustrator: Various (engravings by W. Orr, Hickok & Graff)
Publisher: Julius Hart & Company
Binding: HARDCOVER
Edition Points: 1886 edition, abridged by the author, two volumes bound in one.

Condition Report

Overall Grade: Good (G)/Good+ (G+)
Cover & Spine: Decorative blue cloth with gilt medallion and black stamping. Rubbing to the edges and corners, with fraying at the spine ends. Surface wear and scuffing to the rear cover.
Text Block & Pages: Lightly age-toned pages throughout. Pencil ownership signature on preliminary blank page. Woodcut illustrations remain clean and distinct. Front free end-paper and following page have a tear and folded piece on out edge, the frontispiece and title page have significant creasing in them with title page also having a closed tear in outer edge, the rest of the pages in the volume are unmarred, light tanning along upper edge.
Binding: Inner hinges split at the front and rear patterned endpapers exposing the mesh lining, though the binding remains intact.

See accompanying images for full condition details. Will ship promptly, carefully packaged.

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