LINDLEY, Walter, & J.P. Widney “California of the South” [D. Appleton, 1888]

LINDLEY, Walter, and J.P. Widney. California of the South: Its Physical Geography, Climate, Resources, Routes of Travel, and Health-Resorts. Being a Complete Guide-Book to Southern California.

New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1888. Early edition (no later printings noted). 7.5" x 5.25", viii + 377pp + 4 ads. Original red cloth, lettered in gilt on upper cover and spine, black ruled borders, decorative black vignette of yucca and landscape to front cover. With 3 maps and 34 illustrations, including a large folding “Climatic Map of Southern California” in color and full-page wood-engraved plates. Patterned endpapers. Binding rubbed at extremities with minor fraying at spine head and foot; light wear along joints; gilt bright; folding map complete with creasing and short edge tears at folds; text clean with even toning. Inscription in pencil on FFEP. Very Good-.

A late nineteenth-century promotional and medical guide to Southern California, written during the region’s great land and health boom. The folding climatic map and detailed treatment of geography, resources, and travel routes reflect the period’s aggressive marketing of Southern California as a restorative and investment destination.