Report upon the Colorado River of the West, explored in 1857 and 1858 by Lieutenant Joseph C. Ives…

4to original cloth with gilt cover vignette, rebacked with modern cloth, leather spine label, illustrated. Some staining and wear to covers, and occasional staining and soiling within. There are some stub tears to the maps, and a few of the folding plates are ill creased. Overall in very good shape and the Indian plates are quite bright. The Ives expedition was the first real study of the Colorado, which had as its main purpose to see to what extent the river was navigable. To accomplish this task, a steamer was made in Philadelphia and shipped in parts to San Francisco, where it was back hauled to Ives in pieces in Colorado. The Streeter catalogue indicates that the “Ives expedition went up the Colorado some 500 miles to the limit of navigation, then continued overland along the river. The expedition disbanded at Albuquerque after transversing some 900 miles. His account of the Tonto Apaches who lived in the canyon walls is of particular interest.” All in all, this is an exceptional survey with some great illustrations.