The White Doe Sallie Southall Cotten 1901 First Edition Presentation Copy

📖 **The White Doe — 1901 First Edition, Presentation Copy by Sallie Southall Cotten**
*One of 300 copies presented to the Elizabethan Garden Fund by the author’s children*

**ABOUT THIS BOOK**

Published in 1901 by J. B. Lippincott Company of Philadelphia, “The White Doe” is a historical verse novel by Sallie Southall Cotten (1846-1929). The work reimagines the fate of Virginia Dare, the first English child born in the New World in 1587 at the Roanoke Colony in present-day North Carolina. Rather than simply vanishing with the Lost Colony, Cotten’s narrative follows Virginia’s life among the Croatoan people, blending historical fact with Native American oral tradition.

**THE STORY**

Written entirely in poetic form, the novel traces Virginia’s journey from infancy on Roanoke Island through her integration into the local indigenous community. The text references real historical figures — Manteo, the Roanoke chief who served as cultural intermediary; Wanchese, who resisted English settlement; and the “Croatoan” message carved into the tree at the colony’s abandonment. Cotten frames Virginia’s story as a bridge between cultures, with recurring motifs of motherhood, survival, and cultural exchange. The poem includes extensive appendix notes documenting the historical sources behind each narrative section.

**COVER AND ILLUSTRATIONS**

Deep red cloth-wrapped boards with white lettering. The front cover features a line-art illustration of a white doe standing in tall grass, with a heraldic crest in the upper right corner bearing a shield and banner motto. The spine carries “THE WHITE DOE” and “COTTEN” in white capitals separated by a small heart motif. Original dust jacket present with light edge wear, now protected in a removable archival sleeve.

Inside, the book includes black-and-white illustrations — a signed portrait on page 70 by May Lose Barrett (1901) depicting a woman in flowing white gown against a natural backdrop, and an engraving of “Man-te-o, a chiefe lorde of Roanoak” showing the Roanoke chief standing before canoes on the water. The title page uses red and black ink with a decorative emblem, noting “Printed for the Author.”

**WHY IT MATTERS**

– First edition, 1901, printed by J. B. Lippincott Company for the author
– Presentation copy — one of only 300 copies gifted to the Elizabethan Garden Fund by the author’s four children after her death in 1929
– The dedication plate names all four donors: Sallie Cotten Wiggin, Elba Cotten Wesson, Elizabeth Henderson Cotten, and Preston S. Cotten
– Virginia Dare’s story remains one of America’s most enduring historical mysteries; this is a rare literary treatment from the turn of the 20th century
– 89 pages of verse narrative with historical appendix notes

**FOR COLLECTORS**

A first edition presentation copy of a Roanoke-era verse novel with documented provenance. The Elizabethan Garden Fund dedication plate makes this copy traceable to a specific historical donation, adding significance beyond a standard trade printing.

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**Condition:**
This is a “very good plus” or better vintage novel in cloth wrapped boards.

No writing, no loose, torn or folded pages. The binding is intact and tight. Deep red cloth wrapping on boards is uniform all around, not sunned. Board corners are crisp, with just a hint of surface wear at the corner tips. Decorations on the front board are crisp, intact, not rubbed
Text block closes tightly and is square.

Inside the front pastedown there is an illustrated plate affixed noting that this book was one of 300 copies gifted to the Elizabethan Garden Fund by the author’s daughters after her passing in 1929.

Please see accompanying images for exact condition.

Original dust jacket is complete with some light edge wear and chipping at the spine edges, now in a removable archival sleeve.

Will ship promptly, carefully packaged.

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HFB-SEO-v1: 2026-07-05

1 in stock