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I do not own a vintage copy of "The Big Bonanza" The actual original title of this book was "A History of the Big Bonanza", with an intro from Mark Twain, published in Hartford in 1876 by the American Publishing Company. Wikipedia the free encyclopedia on the internet notes the following:
In 1874 mine operators John W. Mackay, James G. Fair, Sen. John P. Jones, and William Ralston decided that a book should be written about the history of the Comstock. They approached DeQuille as the preferred author and he accepted the task. His original intent was to write a small book which could be sold to overland train passengers and to continue expanding it with new information and additional sketches until it eventually became a volume which could be published for a broader audience.
DeQuille set to work on the book, collecting data, illustrations, and sketches to be included. In March 1875 he sent a letter to Mark Twain, then residing in Hartford, Connecticut, to seek his advise on having the book published. Concurrently Twain had himself seen a need for such a book and, seeing DeQuille as the one to write it, wrote him a letter to that effect. In response to DeQuille's letter, Twain responded with a 19-page letter enthusiastically providing advice and an invitation for DeQuille to gather up all the material he might need and join him in Hartford where they could each work on their respective projects in close proximity and mutual support.
Under Twain's mentorship during the summer of 1875, DeQuille pieced together a sizable volume which contained a mixture of technical chapters on silver mining interspersed with lighter accounts of Nevada events and individuals, including the Northern Paiute group of Native Americans living in the vicinity. DeQuille and Twain believed the book would have wide appeal and sell well. Twain helped DeQuille negotiate a favorable contract with his own publisher and DeQuille returned to Virginia City late that summer. In October a fire destroyed much of the city and his account of this tragedy would become the last chapter of his book.
A History of the Big Bonanza was published by the American Publishing Company of Hartford, Connecticut, in 1876. They also published A History of the Comstock Silver Lode Mines, a smaller version as a paper-bound guide-book to be sold on overland trains. The main book was eagerly anticipated in Virginia City and sold well on the Pacific Coast, but sales in the East were disappointing. DeQuille did not achieve the financial independence he had anticipated and would continue in his position at the Enterprise for another seventeen years.
At the beginning of the 1880s the major silver mining operations at the Comstock Lode were coming to an end and the population of Virginia City was rapidly declining. DeQuille remained a prolific writer, however, providing articles for publication on both coasts, contributing a portion to Myron Angel's History of Nevada (Thompson & West, 1881), and writing the article on Nevada for the 10th edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica in 1884.
In 1893 the Enterprise ended publication. DeQuille remained in Virginia City for a few more years working as a correspondent for a newspaper in Utah and as a contributor to publications on both coasts. In the late 1890s he returned in poor health to West Liberty, Iowa where he resided with his daughter until his death on 16 March 1898.
Original copies of this book in an original state are extremely Rare, the only copies I have seen listed on abebooks.com, all seem to have issues and range up to $900 per copy. You can however pick up a later edition of this book for around $20. I personally have a 1947 edition I bought off of Ebay a few years ago, believe it cost me around $12 or so. I would imagine that all later editions have Mark Twains intro included. What a story preserved for the later generations.
Thank you again to everyone's replies to my latest post!
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