Description
Inscribed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Explorations and Field-Work Of The Smithsonian Institution in 1938, a limited publication from the Smithsonian Institution, with descriptions of The Presidential Cruise of 1938 to the Galapagos Island.
Octavo, [8], 116pp. Half blue morocco, marbled boards, title in gilt on spine. Publisher’s original wrappers bound-in. Marbled endpapers. Bookplate of Frederick Adams Jr. on front endpaper. Decorative binding by James Macdonald Co. of New York. (Halter T860) Halter notes that this was a restricted edition, not for sale to the public.
Includes a laid-in envelope from the “Third Presidential Cruise,” addressed to Mrs. F.B. Adams.
Inscribed on the title page to his cousin, who accompanied Roosevelt on the cruise: “For Fred Adams, from Franklin Roosevelt / 1939 / see p. 13.”
The “Third Presidential Cruise” of Franklin D. Roosevelt took place aboard the USS Houston, from July 14-August 9, 1938. The cruise departed from San Diego, stopped at the Galapagos Islands and continued through the Panama Canal to Florida. The Smithsonian Institution was represented by Dr. Waldo L. Schmitt, who collected samples and conducted research during the voyage. The scientific discovered were compiled by the Smithsonian in this pamphlet. As research continued on the collections from the voyage, Dr. Schmitt kept Roosevelt apprised of his findings, often sending the latest scientific papers to his office (Horowitz, 89-91).
Provenance: The Library of Frederick B. Adams, Jr., Sotheby’s Sale, November 2001.
