The Life of Robert Fulton. With an appendix. / The Life and Studies of Benjamin West, Esq., President of the Royal Academy, Prior to His Arrival in England.

Colden, Cadwallader; John Galt

Published by New York, Kirk & Merceine (for Fulton biography), 1817; Philadelphia, Moses Thomas (for West biography), 1816.

About this Item

First editions of both works. Contemporary half-leather binding with marbled boards. Spine lettered Life of Fulton & West with lovely jewelry-clasp-like filigree geometric decoration. Very good condition. Frontispiece portraits in both works, tissue guard over portrait of West. Preliminaries of the first title, including frontispiece, foxed. Folding table in the first work with small tear along one fold. Although it might seem that they were disparate individuals, one remembered as an inventor, the other as an artist, their lives overlapped considerably. Both were born before American independence, both first pursued careers outside the United States, and both were extremely successful in their own fields. Fulton lived with West in London for several years; he first worked as a painter but his interests increasingly moved toward technology and invention. Besides developing the first commercially successful steamboat Fulton is credited with building the first submarine and designing practical naval torpedoes.

Seller Inventory # 5404

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Life of Robert Fulton. With an appendix. / The Life and Studies of Benjamin West, Esq., President of the Royal Academy, Prior to His Arrival in England.
• Publisher: New York, Kirk & Merceine (for Fulton biography), 1817; Philadelphia, Moses Thomas (for West biography), 1816.
• Binding: Hardcover
• Seller catalogs:
  • Catalogue XXXXXIV (LIV)