An Ocean Cruise and Deep Water Regatta of the Pacific Yacht Club, July, 1884

SANDERSON, J. Gideon Denny (illustrator)

Published by H.S. Crocker & Co., San Francisco, 1884

About this Item

First Edition. -- Condition: Near fine, the minutest of rubbing to small areas of the board edges, inside front and rear hinge starting. -- Details: Rare and superb example of this very detailed celebratory account of the first successful yacht race from San Francisco Bay to Santa Cruz and a subsequent regatta across Monterey Bay from Santa Cruz to Monterey and back, it also includes a history of the club, lists of the members and a description of the fleet. The glory of the work lies in the eight magnificent coloured lithographic plates by Gideon Denny (1830-1866), a renowned marine artist based in San Francisco. Denny's fine plates include five views of sailboats at sea during the races, one of the fleet anchored off Santa Cruz, one of the clubhouse and grounds of the Pacific Yacht Club at Sausalito, and one group portrait of the officers of the club. Inscribed by hand to L.R. Jerome Esq. from Cornelius O'Connor the Treasurer of the Royal Pacific Yacht Club in 1884 (see plate opposite page 50). Lawrence R Jerome, an Honorary Member of the club, was a successful financier together with his brother Leonard (whose daughter become Lady Randolph Churchill, Winston's mother), and they were instrumental in forming the New York Jockey Club. Leonard took a leading part in yachting, he gave a speech on behalf of America at Cowes, attended by the Queen. 'One of the natural leaders of a group of famous club men and wits whose reputation has never been equalled in New York'. Denny was a life member of the Pacific Yacht Club, which organised the excursion; and he captained one of the vessels. (The author of the text, the otherwise unknown J. Sanderson, was a crew member on another yacht.) In the keepsake on California Printing issued by the Book Club of California in 1980-1982 to celebrate the achievements of California presses, John H. Kemble sums up this work thus: "This is perhaps the first book devoted to pleasure yachting to be published on the Pacific Coast, and the illustrations are certainly among the earliest examples of printed marine art to appear from a San Francisco press." -- References: Cowan 566. California Printing I27. Rocq, California Local History: A Bibliography and Union List of Library Holdings 11252. -- Folio (binding size 30.4x24.3 cm), pp. [6] 55 [1]. In publisher's embossed green cloth, lettered in gilt to front panel, patterned endpapers (a variant binding of blue cloth has been noted). --.

Seller Inventory # 104594

Bibliographic Details

• Title: An Ocean Cruise and Deep Water Regatta of the Pacific Yacht Club, July, 1884
• Publisher: H.S. Crocker & Co., San Francisco
• Publication Date: 1884
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: 1st Edition.
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)