The generall historie of Virginia, New-England, and the Summer Isles: with the names of the adventurers, planters, and governours from their first beginning, an[n]o: 1584. to this present 1626
Subtitle: With the procedings of those severall colonies and the accidents that befell them in all their journyes and discoveries. Also the maps and descriptions of all those countryes, their commodities, people, government, customes, and religion yet knowne. Divided into sixe bookes
By: By Captaine Iohn Smith, sometymes governour in those countryes & admirall of New England
Contributors: Purchas, Samuel, 1577?-1626; Symonds, William, 1556-1616?; Barra, John, approximately 1574-1634; Hole, William, -1624; Pass, Simon van de, 1595?-1647; Vaughan, Robert, active 17th century; Powell, Edward
Publisher: Printed by I[ohn] D[awson] and I[ohn] H[aviland] for Michael Sparkes.
Published: 1626
Place of publication: London
Language: eng
Number of pages: 248
Subjects: Glossaries, vocabularies; Powhatan language; Description and travel; Indians of North America; Indian linguistics; History
Notes: First edition printed by I[ohn] D[awson] and I[ohn] H[aviland] for Michael Sparkes in London, 1624.

This is a reissue of the London, 1624 edition (Pollard, 22790), with title page dates altered.

Largely a collected edition of the author's "A description of New England", first printed London, 1616, "A map of Virginia", first printed Oxford, 1612, "New Englands trials", first printed London, 1620, and "A true relation of such occurrences and accidents of noate as hath hapned in Virginia since the first planting of that collony, which is now resident in the south part thereof, till the last returne from thence", first printed London, 1608. Cf. English short title catalogue.

The prefatory pages include a dedicatory poem by Samuel Purchas.

Maps engraved by Robert Vaughan, William Hole, and Simon van de Pass.

Owing to the various states of the title-pages, plates, portraits, and maps, few copies are identically alike. Cf. Church.

Plate with map of "Ould Virginia", engraved by Robert Vaughan, has 4 states: state 1 with no trees or figures on the map, 37 place names, engraved by Robert Vaughan; state 2 with 27 figures of trees added, without name "Iames Reeve" as printer, 25 new place names beginning with "Mountaynes forest"; state 3 includes statement "printed by Iames Reeve", 2 new place names, "Davers Ile" and "P Barkley"; state 4 includes name "Adams Sound" above that of "C Henry". Cf. Sabin and Church.

Plate with map of Virginia has 10 states; state 1 without Smith's arms and with dates "1607" and "1606"; state 2 with dates "1607" and "1606", but without Smith's arms; state 3 with Smith's arms, but without motto and no new place names; state 4 with addition of motto "Vincere est viuiere" under arms, but without "Tauerners roade" above Chesapeake Bay; state 5 includes 4 new place names around Chesapeake Bay, "Tauerners roade", "Winstons Iles", "Brookes Forest" and "Gunters Harbour"; state 6 adds 3 more place names near the royal arms, "Sparkes content", "Democrites tree", and "Burtons Mount"; state 7 with the Purchas page numbers "1692" and "1693" added and with "Sparkes content"; state 8 with place name "Sparkes Vaylley" instead of "Sparkes content" and 4 new inscriptions, (1) "page 41 Smith" in one corner, (2) "Sparkes Poynt" at the outlet of the Potomac river, (3) "Fetherstones Baye" and (4) "Bollers bush" on the upper part of the Toppahanock river; state 9 has place name "Boolers bush" instead of "Bollers bush" and 3 new place names, "Blands C.", "Downes dale", and "Washeborne C", and still includes Purchas page numbers "1692" and "1693"; state 10 Purchas page numbers changed to "1690" and "1691"; later impression of state 10 after plate cracked (state 10a) with crack extending from letter "t" in "Powhatan" downward to the rudder of the ship, and to lower border at 38 degrees. Cf. Sabin and Church.

Plate with map of "The Summer Ils" has 3 states: state 1 lacks the words "Penistons Redoute" and "printed by Iames Reeve"; state 2 includes "Penistons Redoute" but no printer's statement; state 3 has both "Penistons Redoute" and "printed by Iames Reeve". Cf. Sabin and Church.

Plate with map of New England has 9 states: state 1 without the date 1614 under scale of leagues; state 2 with the date 1614 and place names "P Travers" and "Gerrards Ils" near N.E. corner, without Smith's arms; state 3 with Smith's arms in the S.W. corner, without the motto; state 4 with addition of motto "Vincere est viuere" and degrees of latitute on western border, and longitude above and below, before addition of "Paynes Ils"; state 5 with addition of place name "Paynes Ils" and of cross-lines on larger side of Smith's armor and in the background of the portrait, still with "Geor. Low" as printer, name of engraver corrected to "Passaeus"; state 6 with printer's name changed to "Iames Reeue" and the word "Prince" still in the 4th line of the title; state 7 with the words "nowe King" replacing "Prince" in the 4th line of the title, without the N.E. Council arms in the center; state 8 with Council arms added, but without the school of fish and refrence to "New Englands Prospect", two short rivers or branche of "Talbotts Bay" are represented for the first time, "Salem" above "Cape Anna" is erased and supplied below "Bristow" in its proper position, "Charlton" is inserted below "The River Charles"; state 9 with addition of large school of fish and reference to Wood's "New Englands Prospect" of 1634, other additions include extension of  "The River Charles" to the western border, insertion of names "Watertowne", "New towne", "Medford", "Charles Towne", "Saugus", "Boston", "Roxberry", "Winnissime", and "Dorchester", name "Cheuyot Hills" is erased. Cf. Sabin.

Includes a vocabulary of words possibly in the Powhatan language with their English equivalents on p. 40.

Signatures: pi1 (pi1 verso blank) )(² A-N⁴ P-2I⁴

John Dawson printed signatures )(² A-N⁴; John Haviland printed signatures P-2I⁴. Cf. Pollard.

"There is no gathering O, p. 97-104, the gap being the result of dividing the manuscript between two printers in order to hasten the work". Cf. Sabin.

Engraved title page includes map of the east coast of North America from Cape Fear to Penobscot Bay, portraits of "Elizabetha Regina", "Iacobus Rex", and "Carolus Princeps"; engraved by John Barra.

Some copies include additional portraits: the duchess of Richmond and Lenox, to whom the work was dedicated, and of Matoaka (Pocahontas); these portraits were issued separately; also some copies include 6 line errata slip pasted on to the foot of p. 248. Cf. Sabin.

Woodcut head and tail pieces; initials.

Baer, E. Seventeenth century Maryland, 11.

Pilling, J.C. Bibliography of the Iroquoian languages, p. 470-472.

Church, E.D. Catalogue of books relating to the discovery and early history of North and South America, 408A.

Sabin, J. Dictionary of books relating to America from its discovery to the present time, 82826.

Pollard, A.W. Short-title catalogue of books printed in England, Scotland, & Ireland and of English books printed abroad, 1475-1640 (2nd ed.), 22790b.

Bibliotheca Americana: catalogue of the John Carter Brown Library in Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, II: p. 203.

European Americana, 626/128.

English short title catalogue, S111884.

Purchase; 1854; 01845.

John Carter Brown Library copy imperfect: engraved text of title page has been excised from the the ornamental border and mounted on paper; wanting folded map of "Ould Virginia" engraved by Robert Vaughan bound between p. 20 and 21; wanting part of the left hand side of the folded map of "Virginia" engraved by William Hole bound between p. 40 and 41; wanting part of the left hand side of the folded map of "New England" engraved by Simon van de Pass bound between p. 202 and 203; lacking the additional portraits of the duchess of Richmond and Lenox, to whom the work was dedicated, and of Matoaka (Pocahontas)

John Carter Brown Library copy has the 6 line errata slip sometimes found pasted to to the foot of p. 248.

John Carter Brown Library copy has folded map of "Virginia" engraved by William Hole bound between p. 40 and 41 in the tenth state with Purchas' page numbers changed to "1690" and "1691"

John Carter Brown Library copy has folded map of the "Summer Ils" bound between p. 168 and 169, bound here as a double folded maps, in the first state lacking both the words "Penistons Redoute" and "printed by Iames Reeve"

John Carter Brown Library copy has folded map of "New England" engraved by Simon van de Pass bound between p. 202 and 203, in the fourth state with addition of motto "Vincere est viuere" and degrees of latitute on western border, and longitude above and below, before addition of "Paynes Ils", though the coat of arms of the author with the motto is here wanting due to missing portion of map.

John Carter Brown Library copy bound in 18th century full treed calf with gold tooling.

Provenance of the John Carter Brown Library copy: Edwd. Powell: armorial bookplate on front pastedown.
Table of contents: title: (From caption titles) Booke 1. How ancient authors report, the Nevv-VVorld, now called America, was discovered, and part thereof first planted by the English, with the accidents and proceedings of the same; title: Booke 2. The sixt voyage 1606. to another part of Virginia, where now are planted our English colonies, whom God increase and preserue, discovered and described by Captaine Iohn Smith, sometimes governour of the countrey; title: Booke 3. The proceedings and accidents of the English colony in Virginia, extracted from the authors following, by William Simons, doctour of divinitie; title: Booke 4. To make plaine the true proceedings of the historie for 1609. we must follovv the examinations of Doctor Simons, and tvvo learned orations published by the Companie; with the relation of the right honourable the Lord De la Ware; title: Booke 5. The generall historie of the Bermudas, novv called the Summer Iles, from their beginning in the yeere of our Lord 1593. to this present 1624. with their proceedings, accidents and present state; title: Booke 6. The generall historie of New-England.