Rivers of America Series
Encyclopedia
The Rivers of America Series is a landmark series of books on American rivers, for the most part written by literary figures rather than historians. The series spanned three publishers and thirty-seven years.
, and ended in 1974 with the publication of The American: River of El Dorado by Margaret Sanborn
.
Constance Lindsay Skinner
initially conceived the series. She was also the first series editor. Skinner wrote an essay that was included in early volumes of the series in which she describes it as follows:
"This is to be a literary and not a historical series. The authors of these books will be novelists and poets. On them, now in America, as in all lands and times, rests the real responsibility of interpretation. If the average American is less informed about his country than any other national, knows and cares less about its past and about its present in all sections but the one where he resides, it is because books prepared for his instruction were not written by artists."
Skinner's unique vision extended to twenty-four volumes, but the series proved so popular that sixty-five volumes were eventually published over a 37-year period.
The publisher, Farrar & Rinehart
, shepherded the project through four editors, and the publisher's evolution to Rinehart & Company
and later Holt, Rinehart and Winston
. The editors of the series were Constance Lindsay Skinner, who died at her desk editing the sixth volume in the series, Carl Carmer
, who wrote the sixth volume in the series, Stephen Vincent Benét
, and Hervey Allen
. Associate editors were Elizabeth L. Gilman and Jean Crawford. The art editors were Ruth E. Anderson, Faith Ball, Benjamin Feder, Philip Fiorello and Lawrence S. Kamp.
The sixty-five books included in the series represent a wide cross section of writers and illustrators. The series' editors sought out poets, novelists, historians, and illustrators to produce a product that would be a literary sketch rather than a historical tome. For the most part, the editors were successful in bringing the folk life of America alive through the lens of the flowing of America's rivers.
The series includes the first book illustrated by Andrew Wyeth
, The Brandywine; Marjory Stoneman Douglas
' The Everglades: River of Grass
which successfully focused public attention on the plight of the Everglades
; Paul Horgan
's Great River: The Rio Grande in America History, considered the definitive study of the early Southwest
; and poet Edgar Lee Masters
' The Sangamon.
The series represents one of the finest long-term efforts by a publisher to blend the talents of both writers and artists to present a tribute to the rivers that played such a vital role in the development of America. A testament to the editors' outstanding work is the fact that many of these volumes continue to be reprinted and the original editions are now considered highly collectible.
On April 9 and 10, 1997, a group of Rivers of America authors and illustrators were brought together by the Library of Congress
to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the series. The Library of Congress published an Information Bulletin highlighting the celebration on June 7, 1997.
, first printings of the series were denoted by a colophon on the copyright page until 1960. The colophon
consisted of either FR (1937–1946) or R (1946–1959) in a circle or diamond. After 1960, "First Edition" was printed on the copyright page.
Special signed and numbered limited editions were also produced, though not for every volume in the series, and sometimes in very limited print runs. The signed and numbered editions of the series generally included only the author's signature, though sometimes the illustrator's signature was included as well. Where known, these limited editions are included in the list below.
A set of War Editions was published between 1942 and 1945. These editions used a lesser quality of paper and a smaller font size to meet wartime restrictions.
There were also a series of Armed Services editions, denoted:
"Overseas edition for the Armed Forces. Distributed by the Special Services Division, A.S.F., for the Army, and by the Bureau of Naval Personnel for the Navy. U.S. Government property. Not for sale. Published by Editions for the Armed Services, Inc., a non-profit organization established by the Council on Books in Wartime" (Note: This example is from the cover of the St Lawrence)
Several books in the series were revised and/or expanded either in the work itself, or in the illustrations. Where known, these revised editions are included in the list below.
2. The Upper Mississippi, Walter Havighurst
, 1938; illustrated by David Granahan and Lolita Granahan
3. The Suwannee: Strange Green Land, Cecile Hulse Matschat
, 1938; illustrated by Alexander Key
4. The Powder: Let 'er Buck, Maxwell Struthers Burt
, 1938; illustrated by Ross Santee
5. The James, Blair Niles
, 1939; illustrated by Edward Shenton
6. The Hudson, Carl Carmer, 1939; illustrated by Stow Wengenroth
7. The Sacramento: River of Gold, Julian Dana, 1939; illustrated by J. O'Hara Cosgrave, II
8. The Wabash, William E. Wilson
, 1940; illustrated by John de Martelly
9. The Arkansas, Clyde Brion Davis
, 1940; illustrated by Donald McKay
10. The Delaware, Harry Emerson Wildes
, 1940; illustrated by Irwin D. Hoffman
11. The Illinois, James Gray, 1940
12. The Kaw: Heart of a Nation, Floyd Benjamin Streeter
, 1941; illustrated by Isabel Bate and Harold Black
13. The Brandywine, Henry Seidel Canby
, 1941; illustrated by Andrew Wyeth
14. The Charles, Arthur Benson Tourtellot
, 1941; illustrated by Ernest J. Donnelly
15. The Kentucky, Thomas D. Clark
, 1941; illustrated by John A. Spelman, III
16. The Sangamon, Edgar Lee Masters
, 1942; illustrated by Lynd Ward
17. The Allegheny, Frederick Way, Jr., 1942; illustrated by Henry Pitz
18. The Wisconsin, August Derleth
, 1942; illustrated by John Steuart Curry
19. The Lower Mississippi, Hodding Carter
, 1942; illustrated by John McCrady
20. The St. Lawrence, Henry Beston
, 1942; illustrated by A.Y. Jackson
21. The Chicago, Harry Hansen
, 1942; illustrated by Harry Timmins
22. The Twin Rivers: Raritan & Passaic, Harry Emerson Wildes, 1943
23. The Humboldt, Dale L. Morgan
, 1943; illustrated by Arnold Blanch
24. The St. Johns, Branch Cabell
, 1943; illustrated by Doris Lee
25. Rivers of the Eastern Shore: Seventeen Rivers, Hulbert Footner
, 1944; illustrated by Aaron Sopher
26. The Missouri, Stanley Vestal
, 1945
27. The Salinas, Anne B. Fisher, 1945
28. The Shenandoah, Julia Davis, 1945; illustrated by Frederic Taubes
30. The Colorado, Frank Waters
, 1946
31. The Tennessee: the Old River, Donald Davidson, 1946
32. The Connecticut, Walter Hard, 1946
33. The Everglades: River of Grass
, Marjory Stoneman Douglas
, 1947
34. The Tennessee: The New River, Donald Davidson, 1948
35. The Chagres: River of Westward Passage, John Easter Minter, 1948
36. The Mohawk, Codman Hislop, 1948; illustrated by Letterio Calapai
37. The MacKenzie, Leslie Roberts, 1949
38. The Winooski: Heartway of Vermont, Ralph Nading Hill
, 1949; illustrated by George Daly
39. The Ohio, R. E. Banta, 1949
40. The Potomac, Frederick Gutheim
, 1949; illustrated by Mitchel Jamieson
41. The Saskatchewan, Marjorie Wilkins Campbell, 1950
42. The Fraser, Bruce Hutchison
, 1950
43. The Savannah, Thomas L. Stokes, 1951; illustrated by Lamar Dodd
44. The Gila, Edwin Corle
, 1951
45. Salt Rivers of the Massachusetts Shore, Henry Howe
, 1951
46. The Monongahela, Richard Bissell
, 1952
47. The Yazoo, Frank E. Smith
, 1954
48. Great River: the Rio Grande, Paul Horgan
, 1954
49. The Susquehanna, Carl Carmer, 1955
50. The French Broad, Wilma Dykeman
, 1955; illustrated by Douglas Gorsline
51. The Columbia, Stewart H. Holbrook
, 1956
52. River of the Carolinas: The Santee, Henry Savage, Jr., 1956; illustrated by Lamar Dodd
53. The Merrimack, Raymond P. Holden, 1958; illustrated by Aaron Kessler
55. The Genesee, Henry W. Clune, 1963
56. The Cape Fear, Malcolm H. Ross, 1965
57. The St. Croix, James Taylor Dunn, 1965; illustrated by Gerald Hazzard
58. The Cuyahoga, William Donohue Ellis, 1966; illustrated by Kinley T. Shogren
59. The Yukon, Richard Matthews, 1968; illustrated by Bryan Forsyth
60. The Allagash, Lew Dietz
, 1968
61. The Niagara, Donald Braider, 1972; illustrations credited to Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society and the New York Power Authority
62. The Cumberland, James McCague, 1973; illustrated by Charles Walker
63. The Hillsborough: River of the Golden Ibis, Gloria Jahoda
, 1973; illustrated by Ben F. Stahl, Jr.
64. The American: River of El Dorado, Margaret Sanborn
, 1974; illustrated by Jerry Helmrich
History
The Rivers of America Series started in 1937 with the publication of Kennebec: Cradle of Americans by Robert P. Tristram CoffinRobert P. T. Coffin
Robert Peter Tristram Coffin was a writer, poet and professor at Wells College and Bowdoin College . He won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1936.-Life:...
, and ended in 1974 with the publication of The American: River of El Dorado by Margaret Sanborn
Margaret Sanborn
Margaret Sanborn was an American writer and biographer of Robert E. Lee and Mark Twain .-History:Margaret Sanborn resided in Mill Valley, California, north of San Francisco near the Pacific Ocean. She died early in 2005 leaving a son, David R...
.
Constance Lindsay Skinner
Constance Lindsay Skinner
Constance Lindsay Skinner was a Canadian writer, critic, historian and editor best known for having conceived the Rivers of America Series for the publisher Farrar & Rinehart.-Early life and career:...
initially conceived the series. She was also the first series editor. Skinner wrote an essay that was included in early volumes of the series in which she describes it as follows:
"This is to be a literary and not a historical series. The authors of these books will be novelists and poets. On them, now in America, as in all lands and times, rests the real responsibility of interpretation. If the average American is less informed about his country than any other national, knows and cares less about its past and about its present in all sections but the one where he resides, it is because books prepared for his instruction were not written by artists."
Skinner's unique vision extended to twenty-four volumes, but the series proved so popular that sixty-five volumes were eventually published over a 37-year period.
The publisher, Farrar & Rinehart
Farrar & Rinehart
Farrar & Rinehart was a United States book publishing company founded in New York. Farrar & Rinehart enjoyed success with both nonfiction and novels, notably, the landmark Rivers of America Series and the first ten books in the Nero Wolfe corpus of Rex Stout...
, shepherded the project through four editors, and the publisher's evolution to Rinehart & Company
Rinehart & Company
Rinehart & Company, an American publishing company, was the successor to Farrar & Rinehart, Inc. In 1946, following the departure of John C. Farrar, the company was renamed Rinehart & Company. The brothers Stanley M. Rinehart and Frederick R. Rinehart continued to operate the company until its...
and later Holt, Rinehart and Winston
Holt, Rinehart and Winston
Holt McDougal is an American publishing company, a division of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, that specializes in textbooks for use in secondary schools. Holt, Rinehart and Winston was a division of Harcourt Education...
. The editors of the series were Constance Lindsay Skinner, who died at her desk editing the sixth volume in the series, Carl Carmer
Carl Carmer
Carl Lamson Carmer was an author of nonfiction books, memoirs, and novels, many of which focused on Americana such as myths, folklore, and tales. His most famous book, Stars Fell on Alabama, was an autobiographical story of the time he spent living in Alabama...
, who wrote the sixth volume in the series, Stephen Vincent Benét
Stephen Vincent Benét
Stephen Vincent Benét was an American author, poet, short story writer, and novelist. Benét is best known for his book-length narrative poem of the American Civil War, John Brown's Body , for which he won a Pulitzer Prize in 1929, and for two short stories, "The Devil and Daniel Webster" and "By...
, and Hervey Allen
Hervey Allen
William Hervey Allen was an American author.-Biography:He graduated from University of Pittsburgh in 1915, where he also became a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity....
. Associate editors were Elizabeth L. Gilman and Jean Crawford. The art editors were Ruth E. Anderson, Faith Ball, Benjamin Feder, Philip Fiorello and Lawrence S. Kamp.
The sixty-five books included in the series represent a wide cross section of writers and illustrators. The series' editors sought out poets, novelists, historians, and illustrators to produce a product that would be a literary sketch rather than a historical tome. For the most part, the editors were successful in bringing the folk life of America alive through the lens of the flowing of America's rivers.
The series includes the first book illustrated by Andrew Wyeth
Andrew Wyeth
Andrew Newell Wyeth was a visual artist, primarily a realist painter, working predominantly in a regionalist style. He was one of the best-known U.S. artists of the middle 20th century....
, The Brandywine; Marjory Stoneman Douglas
Marjory Stoneman Douglas
Marjory Stoneman Douglas was an American journalist, writer, feminist, and environmentalist known for her staunch defense of the Everglades against efforts to drain it and reclaim land for development...
' The Everglades: River of Grass
The Everglades: River of Grass
The Everglades: River of Grass is a non-fiction book written by Marjory Stoneman Douglas in 1947. Published the same year as the formal opening of Everglades National Park, the book was a call to attention about the degrading quality of life in the Everglades and continues to remain an influential...
which successfully focused public attention on the plight of the Everglades
Everglades
The Everglades are subtropical wetlands in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large watershed. The system begins near Orlando with the Kissimmee River, which discharges into the vast but shallow Lake Okeechobee...
; Paul Horgan
Paul Horgan
Paul Horgan was an American author of fiction and non-fiction, most of which was set in the Southwestern United States. He was the recipient of two Pulitzer prizes in History...
's Great River: The Rio Grande in America History, considered the definitive study of the early Southwest
Southwestern United States
The Southwestern United States is a region defined in different ways by different sources. Broad definitions include nearly a quarter of the United States, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah...
; and poet Edgar Lee Masters
Edgar Lee Masters
Edgar Lee Masters was an American poet, biographer, and dramatist...
' The Sangamon.
The series represents one of the finest long-term efforts by a publisher to blend the talents of both writers and artists to present a tribute to the rivers that played such a vital role in the development of America. A testament to the editors' outstanding work is the fact that many of these volumes continue to be reprinted and the original editions are now considered highly collectible.
On April 9 and 10, 1997, a group of Rivers of America authors and illustrators were brought together by the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the series. The Library of Congress published an Information Bulletin highlighting the celebration on June 7, 1997.
Bibliophile Information
The first editionEdition (book)
The bibliographical definition of an edition includes all copies of a book printed “from substantially the same setting of type,” including all minor typographical variants.- First edition :...
, first printings of the series were denoted by a colophon on the copyright page until 1960. The colophon
Colophon (publishing)
In publishing, a colophon is either:* A brief description of publication or production notes relevant to the edition, in modern books usually located at the reverse of the title page, but can also sometimes be located at the end of the book, or...
consisted of either FR (1937–1946) or R (1946–1959) in a circle or diamond. After 1960, "First Edition" was printed on the copyright page.
Special signed and numbered limited editions were also produced, though not for every volume in the series, and sometimes in very limited print runs. The signed and numbered editions of the series generally included only the author's signature, though sometimes the illustrator's signature was included as well. Where known, these limited editions are included in the list below.
A set of War Editions was published between 1942 and 1945. These editions used a lesser quality of paper and a smaller font size to meet wartime restrictions.
There were also a series of Armed Services editions, denoted:
"Overseas edition for the Armed Forces. Distributed by the Special Services Division, A.S.F., for the Army, and by the Bureau of Naval Personnel for the Navy. U.S. Government property. Not for sale. Published by Editions for the Armed Services, Inc., a non-profit organization established by the Council on Books in Wartime" (Note: This example is from the cover of the St Lawrence)
Several books in the series were revised and/or expanded either in the work itself, or in the illustrations. Where known, these revised editions are included in the list below.
Published by Farrar & Rinehart (1937–1946)
1. The Kennebec: Cradle of the Americans, Robert P. Tristram Coffin, 1937; illustrated by Maitland de Gogorza2. The Upper Mississippi, Walter Havighurst
Walter Havighurst
Walter Edwin Havighurst , critic, novelist, literary and social historian of the Midwest, professor of English at Miami University.- History :...
, 1938; illustrated by David Granahan and Lolita Granahan
3. The Suwannee: Strange Green Land, Cecile Hulse Matschat
Cecile Hulse Matschat
Cecile Hulse Matschat was an American author, geographer and botanist. Matschat primarily was a writer of books on gardens, gardening and the Okefenokee Swamp. Her book, Suwanee River: Strange Green Land provided rare insight into the society and history of the people of the Okefenokee Swamp...
, 1938; illustrated by Alexander Key
Alexander Key
Alexander Hill Key was an American science fiction writer, most of whose books were aimed at a juvenile audience. He became a nationally known illustrator before he became an author...
4. The Powder: Let 'er Buck, Maxwell Struthers Burt
Maxwell Struthers Burt
Maxwell Struthers Burt , was an American novelist, poet, and short-story writer.-Life:...
, 1938; illustrated by Ross Santee
5. The James, Blair Niles
Blair Niles
Blair Niles was an American novelist and travel writer. She was a founding member of the Society of Woman Geographers. Blair Niles is a pen name of Mary Blair Rice, adopted from her late second husband's name, Robert Niles, Jr.- History :...
, 1939; illustrated by Edward Shenton
Edward Shenton
- History :Edward Shenton was an American illustrator, author, editor, poet, and teacher.Between 1923 and 1976 Shenton illustrated over 130 books including The Yearling, Tender Is the Night, Green Hills of Africa, Freedom River Florida 1845, and three volumes of the Rivers of America Series...
6. The Hudson, Carl Carmer, 1939; illustrated by Stow Wengenroth
Stow Wengenroth
Stow Wengenroth was an American artist and lithographer, born in 1906 in Brooklyn, New York. Wengenroth was once called "America's greatest living artist working in black and white" by the American realist painter Andrew Wyeth, and he is generally considered to be one of the finest American...
7. The Sacramento: River of Gold, Julian Dana, 1939; illustrated by J. O'Hara Cosgrave, II
8. The Wabash, William E. Wilson
William E. Wilson (writer)
William E. Wilson was the author of eleven books, including The Wabash, and was a professor of fiction writing and literature at Indiana University from 1950 to 1972.-Biography:...
, 1940; illustrated by John de Martelly
John de Martelly
John Stockton de Martelly was a lithographer, etcher, painter, illustrator, teacher and writer.John de Martelly was born in Philadelphia and studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, in Florence, Italy, as well as the Royal College of Art in London...
- The Wabash, William E. Wilson, 1940; illustrated by John de Martelly (signed, limited)
9. The Arkansas, Clyde Brion Davis
Clyde Brion Davis
Clyde Brion Davis was an American author and freelance journalist active from the mid-1920s until his death. Davis is best known for his novels The Anointed and The Great American Novel, though he authored more than 15 books.Clyde Brion Davis was born on May 22, 1894, in Unadilla, Nebraska, to...
, 1940; illustrated by Donald McKay
10. The Delaware, Harry Emerson Wildes
Harry Emerson Wildes
Harry Emerson Wildes an American sociologist, historian and writer who is best known for his biographies of William Penn, George Fox and Anthony Wayne-History:...
, 1940; illustrated by Irwin D. Hoffman
11. The Illinois, James Gray, 1940
12. The Kaw: Heart of a Nation, Floyd Benjamin Streeter
Floyd Benjamin Streeter
Floyd Benjamin Streeter was an American historian and writer best known for his biography of Ben Thompson.Floyd Benjamin Streeter was a historian and librarian of Hays City Kansas State College . Streeter wrote a number of books on topics related to the Old West...
, 1941; illustrated by Isabel Bate and Harold Black
13. The Brandywine, Henry Seidel Canby
Henry Seidel Canby
Henry Seidel Canby was a critic, editor, and Yale University professor.Canby was born in Wilmington, Delaware and attended Wilmington Friends School...
, 1941; illustrated by Andrew Wyeth
Andrew Wyeth
Andrew Newell Wyeth was a visual artist, primarily a realist painter, working predominantly in a regionalist style. He was one of the best-known U.S. artists of the middle 20th century....
- The Brandywine, Henry Seidel Canby, 1941; illustrated by Andrew Wyeth (Delaware Edition: signed, limited)
14. The Charles, Arthur Benson Tourtellot
Arthur Tourtellot
Arthur Bernon Tourtellot was an American writer, screenwriter and producer best known for the book Lexington and Concord.-History:...
, 1941; illustrated by Ernest J. Donnelly
- The Charles, Arthur Benson Tourtellot, 1941; (Boston Edition: signed, limited)
15. The Kentucky, Thomas D. Clark
Thomas D. Clark
Thomas Dionysius Clark was perhaps Kentucky's most notable historian. Clark saved from destruction a large portion of Kentucky's printed history, which later become a core body of documents in the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives...
, 1941; illustrated by John A. Spelman, III
16. The Sangamon, Edgar Lee Masters
Edgar Lee Masters
Edgar Lee Masters was an American poet, biographer, and dramatist...
, 1942; illustrated by Lynd Ward
Lynd Ward
Lynd Kendall Ward was an American artist and storyteller, and son of Methodist minister and prominent political organizer Harry F. Ward. He illustrated some 200 juvenile and adult books...
17. The Allegheny, Frederick Way, Jr., 1942; illustrated by Henry Pitz
- The Allegheny, Frederick Way, Jr., 1942; (Pittsburgh Edition: signed, limited)
18. The Wisconsin, August Derleth
August Derleth
August William Derleth was an American writer and anthologist. Though best remembered as the first publisher of the writings of H. P...
, 1942; illustrated by John Steuart Curry
John Steuart Curry
John Steuart Curry was an American painter whose career spanned from 1924 until his death. He was noted for his paintings depicting life in his home state, Kansas...
19. The Lower Mississippi, Hodding Carter
Hodding Carter
William Hodding Carter, II was a prominent Southern U.S. progressive journalist and author. Carter was born in Hammond, the largest community in Tangipahoa Parish, in southeastern Louisiana, to William Hodding Carter, I , and the former Irma Dutartre...
, 1942; illustrated by John McCrady
20. The St. Lawrence, Henry Beston
Henry Beston
Henry Beston was an American writer and naturalist, best known as the author of The Outermost House, written in 1925.-Early life and work:...
, 1942; illustrated by A.Y. Jackson
21. The Chicago, Harry Hansen
Harry Hansen (author)
Harry Hansen was an American journalist, editor, literary critic and historian. He is notable as one of the many authors who wrote for the Random House Landmark Series of children's history during the 1950s and 1960s and he also edited the World Book from 1950-1965.- Life and work :Hanson was born...
, 1942; illustrated by Harry Timmins
- Songs of the Rivers of America, Carl Carmer, 1942 (not given a series number)
22. The Twin Rivers: Raritan & Passaic, Harry Emerson Wildes, 1943
23. The Humboldt, Dale L. Morgan
Dale Morgan
Lowell Dale Morgan , generally cited as Dale Morgan or Dale L. Morgan, was an American historian, accomplished researcher, biographer, editor, and critic. He specialized in material on Utah history, Mormon history, the American fur trade, and overland trails...
, 1943; illustrated by Arnold Blanch
Arnold Blanch
Arnold Blanch , was born and raised in Mantorville, Minnesota. He was an American modernist painter, etcher, illustrator, lithographer, muralist, printmaker and art teacher. His modernist paintings are associated with the Social Realist movement. Blanch met his first wife the painter Lucile Blanch,...
24. The St. Johns, Branch Cabell
James Branch Cabell
James Branch Cabell, ; April 14, 1879 – May 5, 1958) was an American author of fantasy fiction and belles lettres. Cabell was well regarded by his contemporaries, including H. L. Mencken and Sinclair Lewis. His works were considered escapist and fit well in the culture of the 1920s, when his...
, 1943; illustrated by Doris Lee
Doris Lee
Doris Emrick Lee was born in Illinois and was an American folk artist who was known for her figurative painting and printmaking. She won the Logan Medal of the arts from the Chicago Art Institute in 1935....
25. Rivers of the Eastern Shore: Seventeen Rivers, Hulbert Footner
Hulbert Footner
Hulbert Footner was a Canadian writer of non-fiction and detective fiction.- Early career :He was born William Hulbert Footner in Hamilton, Ontario, and traveled to New York in 1898. In the United States, he attempted an acting career, which he eventually gave up on...
, 1944; illustrated by Aaron Sopher
26. The Missouri, Stanley Vestal
Stanley Vestal
Stanley Vestal was an American writer, poet and historian best known for his book Dodge City, Queen of the Cowtowns.-Biography:...
, 1945
27. The Salinas, Anne B. Fisher, 1945
28. The Shenandoah, Julia Davis, 1945; illustrated by Frederic Taubes
- The James: from Iron Gate to Sea, Blair Niles, 1945; (Expansion of the 1939 edition, which focused on the Tidewater area of the James River basin only.)
Published by Rinehart & Co. (1946–1960)
29. The Housatonic: Puritan River, Chard Powers Smith, 194630. The Colorado, Frank Waters
Frank Waters
Frank Waters was an American writer. He is known for his novels and historical works about the American Southwest...
, 1946
31. The Tennessee: the Old River, Donald Davidson, 1946
32. The Connecticut, Walter Hard, 1946
33. The Everglades: River of Grass
The Everglades: River of Grass
The Everglades: River of Grass is a non-fiction book written by Marjory Stoneman Douglas in 1947. Published the same year as the formal opening of Everglades National Park, the book was a call to attention about the degrading quality of life in the Everglades and continues to remain an influential...
, Marjory Stoneman Douglas
Marjory Stoneman Douglas
Marjory Stoneman Douglas was an American journalist, writer, feminist, and environmentalist known for her staunch defense of the Everglades against efforts to drain it and reclaim land for development...
, 1947
- The Everglades: River of Grass, Marjory Stoneman Douglas, 1947. (Florida Edition; signed, limited)
34. The Tennessee: The New River, Donald Davidson, 1948
35. The Chagres: River of Westward Passage, John Easter Minter, 1948
36. The Mohawk, Codman Hislop, 1948; illustrated by Letterio Calapai
37. The MacKenzie, Leslie Roberts, 1949
38. The Winooski: Heartway of Vermont, Ralph Nading Hill
Ralph Nading Hill
Ralph Nading Hill was a Vermont writer and preservationist.Hill's books include The Winooski, Heartway of Vermont , which viewed Vermont through the lens of the river known to the Algonquians as "The Onion River" and Sidewheeler Saga, a book about the steamboat Ticonderoga, the last sidewheel...
, 1949; illustrated by George Daly
39. The Ohio, R. E. Banta, 1949
- The Ohio, R. E. Banta, 1949; (Valley Edition; signed, limited)
40. The Potomac, Frederick Gutheim
Frederick Gutheim
Frederick Gutheim was an urban planner and historian, architect, and author. He is noted for writing The Potomac, a history of the Potomac River and the 40th volume in the Rivers of America Series, and Worthy of a Nation a history of the development of Washington, D.C..-Career:Gutheim was born in...
, 1949; illustrated by Mitchel Jamieson
Mitchel Jamieson
Mitchel Jamieson was an American painter.Jamieson was born in Linden, Virginia, in 1915. He studied at the Abbott School of Art and the Corcoran School of Art...
41. The Saskatchewan, Marjorie Wilkins Campbell, 1950
42. The Fraser, Bruce Hutchison
Bruce Hutchison
William Bruce Hutchison, was a Canadian author and journalist.Born in Prescott, Ontario, Hutchison was educated in public schools in Victoria, British Columbia. He married Dorothy Kidd McDiarmid in 1925, around the same time that he began his journalism career as a political reporter in Ottawa...
, 1950
43. The Savannah, Thomas L. Stokes, 1951; illustrated by Lamar Dodd
Lamar Dodd
Lamar Dodd was a U.S. painter whose work reflected a love of the American South.- Early life and education :Born in Fairburn, Georgia to Rev...
44. The Gila, Edwin Corle
Edwin Corle
-Biography:He was born in Wildwood, New Jersey and educated at the University of California, Berkeley, where he received his A.B. in 1928. For the next two years he was a graduate student at Yale University.In 1932 he married Helen Freeman in Ensenada, Mexico....
, 1951
45. Salt Rivers of the Massachusetts Shore, Henry Howe
Henry Howe
Henry Howe was an author who wrote histories of several states in the United States. His most celebrated work is the three volume Historical Collections of Ohio....
, 1951
46. The Monongahela, Richard Bissell
Richard Pike Bissell
Richard Pike Bissell was an author of short stories and novels, one of which, 7½ Cents, was turned into the Broadway musical The Pajama Game. This won him the 1955 Tony Award for Best Musical...
, 1952
47. The Yazoo, Frank E. Smith
Frank E. Smith
Frank Ellis Smith was a U.S. Representative from Mississippi.Born in Sidon, Mississippi, Smith attended the public schools of Sidon and Greenwood, Mississippi....
, 1954
48. Great River: the Rio Grande, Paul Horgan
Paul Horgan
Paul Horgan was an American author of fiction and non-fiction, most of which was set in the Southwestern United States. He was the recipient of two Pulitzer prizes in History...
, 1954
49. The Susquehanna, Carl Carmer, 1955
50. The French Broad, Wilma Dykeman
Wilma Dykeman
Wilma Dykeman Stokely was an American writer of fiction and nonfiction whose works chronicled the people and land of Appalachia.-Biography:...
, 1955; illustrated by Douglas Gorsline
Douglas Gorsline
Douglas W. Gorsline was an American painter and writer who wasborn in Rochester, New York. He attended Yale School of Art and the Art Students League of New York....
51. The Columbia, Stewart H. Holbrook
Stewart Holbrook
Stewart Hall Holbrook was an American lumberjack, writer, and popular historian. His writings focused on what he called the "Far Corner": Washington, Oregon, and Idaho...
, 1956
- The Columbia, Stewart H. Holbrook, 1956; (Lewis & ClarkLewis and Clark ExpeditionThe Lewis and Clark Expedition, or ″Corps of Discovery Expedition" was the first transcontinental expedition to the Pacific Coast by the United States. Commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson and led by two Virginia-born veterans of Indian wars in the Ohio Valley, Meriwether Lewis and William...
Edition: limited, signed)
52. River of the Carolinas: The Santee, Henry Savage, Jr., 1956; illustrated by Lamar Dodd
Lamar Dodd
Lamar Dodd was a U.S. painter whose work reflected a love of the American South.- Early life and education :Born in Fairburn, Georgia to Rev...
53. The Merrimack, Raymond P. Holden, 1958; illustrated by Aaron Kessler
Published by Holt, Rinehart & Winston (1960–1974)
54. The Minnesota, Evan Jones, 196255. The Genesee, Henry W. Clune, 1963
56. The Cape Fear, Malcolm H. Ross, 1965
57. The St. Croix, James Taylor Dunn, 1965; illustrated by Gerald Hazzard
58. The Cuyahoga, William Donohue Ellis, 1966; illustrated by Kinley T. Shogren
59. The Yukon, Richard Matthews, 1968; illustrated by Bryan Forsyth
60. The Allagash, Lew Dietz
Lew Dietz
Lew Dietz was an American writer, much of whose work centered on his native Maine. In a long career he produced 20 books and hundreds of magazine articles for Down East magazine , True, Yankee, Redbook, Coast Fisherman and Outdoors Maine among others.Dietz was born in Pittsburgh and graduated from...
, 1968
61. The Niagara, Donald Braider, 1972; illustrations credited to Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society and the New York Power Authority
New York Power Authority
The New York Power Authority , officially the Power Authority of the State of New York , is a New York State public benefit corporation and the largest state-owned power organization in the United States. NYPA provides some of the lowest-cost electricity in New York State, operating 17 generating...
62. The Cumberland, James McCague, 1973; illustrated by Charles Walker
63. The Hillsborough: River of the Golden Ibis, Gloria Jahoda
Gloria Jahoda
Gloria Jahoda was an author of fiction and non-fiction, including literature for young readers. She is best known for her journalistic history of Floridian folk culture in the 1960s...
, 1973; illustrated by Ben F. Stahl, Jr.
64. The American: River of El Dorado, Margaret Sanborn
Margaret Sanborn
Margaret Sanborn was an American writer and biographer of Robert E. Lee and Mark Twain .-History:Margaret Sanborn resided in Mill Valley, California, north of San Francisco near the Pacific Ocean. She died early in 2005 leaving a son, David R...
, 1974; illustrated by Jerry Helmrich
Published by William Hodge & Company; London, UK
- The St. Lawrence, Henry Beston, 1951; illustrated by A. Y. JacksonA. Y. JacksonAlexander Young Jackson, was a Canadian painter and a founding member of the Group of Seven.- Early life and training :...