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103 pp. With 9 original albumen photographs mounted on captioned leaves. 21x13 cm. (8½x5¼"), original blue cloth stamped in gilt. First Edition.

The 1875 first edition of Prof. Joseph LeConte’s Ramblings of the University Excursion Party has always been one of the most desirable books in Yosemite literary annals. This charming volume was authored by one of the most beloved professors of the pioneer University of California and includes the added bonus of an association with John Muir, with whom the party spent a good deal of time during its 1870 visit to Yosemite. Bibliographers decided long ago that a total of 120 copies were likely privately printed for the ten members of the party, although it is not known how many of these survived. Nine small original photographs are contained in the volume. Eight of them are Sierra scenes, including a view of the party in Yosemite, while the ninth is a view of Bradley & Rulofson’s photographic studio in San Francisco. This is one of the important cornerstones of any Yosemite collection. This particular copy has an additional Yosemite association, in that it contains the signature of Hattie J. Hodgdon, February 1876, a member of the family that owned Hodgdon’s Ranch, a stagestop along the BIg Oak Flat Road to Yosemite in its early days. Provenance: Eldon Grupp.