Written by Noah Edgar
Astronomical and Geographical Essays:
Containing, I. A Comprehensive View of the General Principles of Astronomy. II. The Use of the Celestial and Terrestrial Globes. III. The Description and Use of the Armillary Sphere, Planetarium, Tellurian, and Lunarium. IV. An Introduction to Practical Astronomy; or the use of the quadrant and Equatorial
XX QB42 .A2 1789
About the Book
Our copy of Astronomical and Geographical Essays… written by George Adams the younger is a rare first edition published in London in 1789 for the author by Robert Hindmarsh, an English printer to His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, George IV.
The Author: George Adams Jr.
George Adams Jr. was born in London, England in 1750 with no known birthday. Adams Jr. was a scientist, optician, scientific writer, and he – like his father, George Adams Sr. – was a mathematical instrument maker to King George III of Great Britain, succeeding his fathers post. In addition to making mathematical instruments and globes, George Adams Jr., according to the Linda Hall Library, “wrote books, not so much about his instruments as what you could do with them.” In fact, he was best known for his books on the use of mathematical instruments and was highly regarded for them. He also wrote several essays including those on electricity, microscopes, vision, and natural and experimental philosophy. In politics, the Adams were Tories (now known as the conservative party) and thus received favor in court by King George III. The position as mathematical instrument maker to the King was a position held by all male members of the Adams household, starting with George Adams Sr., then to George Adams Jr., and finally, upon his death in 1795, passed to his younger brother Dudley.
The Adams family owned a shop on No. 60 Fleet-Street, London, selling mathematical, philosophical, and optical instruments. The shopped was founded in 1735 by George Adams Sr. and, upon his death in 1773, was passed onto George Adams Jr. Upon the youngers death in 1795, the shop was passed down to his younger brother Dudley Adams, where he manufactured and sold the instruments and books, including this one.
Physical Description
This fine copy of the of Adams’s Astronomical and Geographical Essays is a rare first edition sitting at 22 cm, complete with 665 numbered pages, 21 folded engraved plates bound at the end of the book as well as an engraved frontispiece. According to an informative card inside the book, this copy is bound in full contemporary calf and rebacked to match with the red label on the spine. Further, according to the card, the inner hinges are reinforced; except for slight chipping at a few margins of the plates. The boards of the book have minimal damage with just a few minor cracks due to old age, as well as a small crack in the front board near the bottom left corner. The spine has a red panel outlined with gold tracings. The shortened title of the book “Astronomical Essays” is depicted inside this red panel.
Binders would decorate the spine and covers of a book with gold leaf by
impressing the gold into the material by mean of a heated letter, lettering pallet, or gold tooling. This practice is evident on the spine of this copy which contains eight thin gold lines of two with five golden designs that resemble an asterisk or snowflake as well as the date of publication, 1789, impressed on the bottom of the spine.
Innards
On the frontispiece is an informative illustration of a woman and (what could be) her two daughters. In the background are trees curving inward, outlining a shooting star – which the little girl looks at through the telescope. This illustration is telling to the fact that the author George Adams Jr. created instruments such as telescopes and that this is a book on astronomy. At the bottom of the page it says “London. Published Oct. 10th 1788, by Geo(rge) Adams. No. 60 Fleet Street”, but the book was printed and published in 1789. Further, at the bottom of the title page it states that this book was printed for the author by R. Hindmarsh and was sold at Adams shop at No. 60 Fleet Street. The book contains a table of contents that fills the space of 3 pages. The 21 folded pages at the end of the book is neat, but part of what makes this copy unique is that the author, or (more likely) someone who previously owned the book handwrote a reference in the text to figure 1 plate XI.
Ownership
This copy of the book contains minimal annotations, notes, or signatures. When there were, the owner typically used abbreviations. On the title page is the signature of S.S. Blowers. Also known as Sampson Salter Blowers – a North American lawyer, loyalist and jurist from Nova Scotia. Blowers was born in 1742 and, upon completing his Masters at Harvard in 1765, began studying law at Thomas Hutchinson’s office, eventually becoming a very successful trial lawyer as he worked with John Adams. Blowers was considered a Loyalist as he defended British soldiers in the Boston Massacre. As a result, Blowers was sent to England, later settling down in Nova Scotia where he became the attorney general. During his time in Nova Scotia, Blowers waged a judicial war in an effort to free Black Nova Scotian Slaves, leading to a decline in slavery in Nova Scotia.
In the back of the book is a bookseller, cataloger, or collectors initials, followed by the year 1979.
This appears to be a note about the position of the sun at a particular time as it reads: 12 May Sun dec 18 degrees 18 minutes
A signature by WD Chase on September 8th This is likely proof of ownership, however, many people come up under WD Chase in this time frame. From what I gathered, it could be John WD Chase, a former Major in the Army. Of all the names that I found, is likely an abbreviated middle name.
1st edn 3011. This is a first edition copy. The number following is likely the inventory number.
Sources
https://nlegislature.ca/sites/default/files/legc/scanned/at_large/volume1/1799.pdf
https://www.findagrave.com
https://magic.msu.edu/
Tad Boehmer
Written by Noah Edgar
