Earliest AAA Automobile Blue Books

"[Lot of 2] The Automobile Official AAA 1906 Blue Book... [and] The Automobile Official AAA 1907 Blue Book...", American Automobile Assoc.

This lot features two of the earliest AAA blue books:

The Automobile Official AAA 1906 Blue Book. While the Automobile Blue Book began publication in 1901, this volume represented a change in format and breadth under the direction of the AAA leadership including A.L. Westgard, pioneer road map maker nicknamed "The Pathfinder," who provided the maps. The 782 pages cover the northeastern United States with a useful "Graphic Index to the Official Automobile Blue Book" (8.8 x 7.9") on the front pastedown and endpaper that shows the main driving routes along with corresponding page numbers for detailed directions. Features numerous single-page maps and advertisements throughout.

The Automobile Official AAA 1907 Blue Book - Volume 1. The apparent success of the 1906 issue resulted in the proposed publication of three separate regional editions in 1907. This example is the first volume, covering "the best and most popular routes in New York State and Canada, with extension routes to and from the Middle West" (there is no indication volumes 2 or 3 were ever published). Many updates and improvements were noted in the Publisher’s Foreword, including general maps, the most interesting of which is the Transcontinental Routes of Automobiles Complete to 1907, which may be one of the first maps to show the potential for transcontinental travel by auto that Westgard validated when he led the first AAA transcontinental tour in 1911 (click here to read about the 1911 map listed earlier this year). 571 pages with advertisements and maps throughout.

Octavo, gilt stamped limp leather. There are no past sales records or institutional examples located on OCLC for either volume.

References:

Condition: B

Contents are very good with occasional soiling and minor creasing. A previous owner's stamp and signature is on the front pastedown of both volumes, as well as a small stamp on the title page of the 1907 volume. Covers are heavily worn along the edges, and the spines have essentially perished with the 1906 example having several loose signatures.