Long before Lewis and Clark set out on their great overland journey to the Pacific, Alexander Mackenzie became the first to make it by land to the west coast of North America. His account is revealed in his Voyages from Montreal on the River St. Laurence Through the Continent of North America to the Frozen and Pacific Oceans in the Years 1789 and 1793. Mackenzie was a fur trader for the Northwest Company, seeking an overland route to the Pacific. His first try, in 1789, was a failure. He followed the river now known as the Mackenzie (named for him). Unfortunately, it emptied into the "frozen" ocean, what we now call the Arctic. Undeterred, he tried again in 1793, this time following different rivers and overland stretches recommended by local Indians before finally reaching the Pacific Ocean from the Bella Coola River in British Columbia. Item 63 is an uncut first edition (1801) presentation copy inscribed by Mackenzie. $32,500.

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