First edition? Gunning the Chesapeake
 

I have what I believe is a first edition of Gunning the Chesapeake by Roy E. Walsh. On the copyright page, there is no reference to an edition number or printing number, only "Copyright @ 1960 by Tidewater Publishers." See attached photo. I see other other adverts for this book cite "Second Printing," for example. What is your opinion? Thanks much.

If Tidewater was the first publisher of record then it stands to reason that yours is a first edition, first printing.






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Makes sense. Thanks, Dean.

Roy Walsh was a Talbot County lawyer who apparently liked waterfowl hunting and history better than lawyering.

For those not of the (marsh) cloth, he was ever so much more than that. He is essentially responsible as the main sparkplug that ignited the Easton MD Waterfowl Festival, a giant affair of decoys, sculpture, flat art, and guns held every November beginning the Friday of Veteran's Day weekend. They kicked it off in 1970 and except for a COVID break last year it has held up a full head of steam ever since.

He had the biggest collection of commercial waterfowl hunting artifacts ever assembled; gunning punts, punt guns, battery guns, sinkboxes, gunning lamps, and some of the crudest and rarest decoys ever made. At a seminar talk he gave one year at the high school, he said he came close to divorce twice: when he insisted on first building a new 30 x 80 ft. barn to hold all his artifacts, then filled it and told his wife they needed a bigger farm with more land and bigger barns. She reluctantly agreed and said later it probably added 10 years to his life. We of the Tidewater owe him a great deal.

Kevin, thanks for expounding on my one line description of Harry Walsh's devotion to waterfowling.

Interesting that this book come up for discussion - I just picked up a copy at the Southern this year and got around to reading it this weekend. Very informative. Does anyone know of other waterfowl books by Mr. Walsh? I go hunting on the Chesapeake every year so this book was a great find for me. Thank you

I will never forget hunting on Currituck Sound with my son almost 10 years ago. The birds were not flying well but it did not matter.

When the seller was asking about prices I looked on Amazon and found a signed copy so I ordered it . I just wanted to read it !!!

I’ve spent a fair amount of time in Dorchester County and some in Talbot , but always for Sika deer . Waterfowl avoided me until a goose a year or two ago and the mallards yesterday .