Is My Copy of Butcher's Crossing a First Edition?

The points of issue

• True first: The Macmillan Company, New York, 1960; collation [vi], [2], 3-239 pp. First printing is so stated on the copyright page
• Bound in original half crimson/red cloth over grey paper-covered boards, stamped in silver (Bauman describes the same binding as 'red and gray cloth')
• The first-state pictorial dust jacket is by Gilbert Etheredge and shows a buffalo and crossed guns; the price is present at the front flap on the first issue
• Dealers note that jacket corners are frequently found clipped on copies issued from the publisher, so corner-clipping alone should not be read as a later state — verify against the copyright-page statement, which is the controlling point

How The Macmillan Company, New York marked a first edition

• US Macmillan, mid-1936 to 1979 (the 'First printing' era): from mid-1936 the copyright page states the month and year of publication, often with a 'First printing' line. The rule for this whole window: the…
• UK Macmillan, mid-1920s onward: London Macmillan states 'First published (Year)' on the copyright/verso page of a first edition, with later printings adding 'Reprinted (Year)' lines beneath. A first shows the…

Full The Macmillan Company, New York first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Confirm the first-edition statement — look for “First Edition,” “First Printing,” or the publisher’s equivalent wording.
3. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
4. Verify this is the US true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
5. Rule out a book-club edition — a blind-stamp on the rear board or a jacket with no printed price marks a book-club copy.
6. Photograph four things — the front cover, spine, title page, and copyright page — the standard record for identification.

The dust jacket

For a collectible first edition the dust jacket matters as much as the book. Confirm the jacket is present and unclipped — the printed price should still be at the corner of the flap (a clipped corner or a price-less flap can indicate a book-club issue). First-state jackets can differ from later ones in the cover art, blurbs, or review quotations; where a specific first-state jacket point is known for this title it is noted above.

Binding & format

Where multiple bindings exist, the hardcover trade issue is usually (but not always) the precedence copy — confirm against the points above. Later printings often show cheaper cloth, thinner boards, or simplified spine stamping. A simultaneous signed or limited issue, when one exists, is a distinct state from the trade first.

Is this the true first?

The US Macmillan 1960 is not the only first that matters: there is a genuine British edition. Victor Gollancz, London, published Butcher's Crossing in 1960 as the first English edition, and it is separately collected. Both should be named: Macmillan (New York, 1960) is the accepted true first; Gollancz (London, 1960) is the first English edition. Month-level precedence between the two same-year editions could not be established from the sources consulted, so the US priority should be stated as the accepted convention rather than as a documented date precedence. The 2007 NYRB Classics reissue is 'first thus' only and carries no first-edition standing.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club tells for the 1960 Macmillan printing were documented in the sources consulted. The reliable discriminator remains the copyright-page first-printing statement together with the Etheredge first-state jacket; later NYRB Classics and Vintage Classics printings are trade reissues under their own imprints and are not confusable with the 1960 sheets.P-039213

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Butcher's Crossing a first edition?

A first edition of Butcher's Crossing by John Williams (The Macmillan Company, New York) is identified by: True first: The Macmillan Company, New York, 1960; collation [vi], [2], 3-239 pp. First printing is so stated on the copyright page.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key. The US Macmillan 1960 is not the only first that matters: there is a genuine British edition.

Is the book-club edition the same as the first?

No book-club tells for the 1960 Macmillan printing were documented in the sources consulted. The reliable discriminator remains the copyright-page first-printing statement together with the Etheredge first-state jacket; later NYRB Classics and Vintage Classics printings are trade reissues under their own imprints and are not confusable with the 1960 sheets.

I have a first edition of Butcher's Crossing — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and decode the printing with the free First Edition Checker. Clearing out books? I take them as a free donation and make sure collectible copies are identified, not discarded: free pickup in the Albuquerque metro (scheduled by route), the 24/7 drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, or donor-paid mail-in from anywhere in the US. Questions? Call or text 505-250-3804.

Glossary

First edition

Every copy printed from the first setting of type. Collectors usually want the first edition, first printing (the true first).

First printing / impression

A single press run from that setting. The first printing is the earliest and most desirable; later printings are still the first edition but not the true first.

Number line (printer's key)

A row of numbers on the copyright page (e.g. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1). The lowest number present is the printing — a line including 1 marks a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2).

Points of issue

Specific physical details — a stated edition, a number line, a typo, a jacket state — that identify the true first printing.

Book-club edition (BCE)

A reprint made for a book club. Tells include a blind-stamped dot or square on the rear board and a dust jacket with no printed price. Not the true first.

First thus

The first appearance of a particular version (first paperback, first illustrated, first U.S. printing) — a first of that kind, not the first edition of the work.