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1

Richard Worsley. "The History of the Isle of Wight."

1975. EP Publishing. The original was published in 1781 and was a handsome work suitable for the library of a country gentleman. This edition is a true copy of that work and anyone studying the Island must still turn to "Worsley" as his or her starting point for that research. The book is in very good condition, with no visible signs of wear, inscriptions or markings. The dust jacket is not price cut and is also in very good condition. £165.

2

George Brannon. "Vectis Scenery."

2002. Editor Robin McInnes. A faithful copy of the original work by George Brannon in 1865. The book is enclosed in a slip case. This particular copy is one of the author's proof copies. The boards are green with gilt titles and decoration, as is the slip case. Robin McInnes has signed the first free endpaper. Both the book and case are in fine condition. £55.

 

3

"Ryde's Heritage Our Town, Your Histories."

2008. Ryde Social Heritage Group. Valuable information from Ryde Cemetery with detailed research about the people and their lives. The best of the modern contributions towards finding out more of Ryde's past. Well illustrated in card covers in mint condition. £12.50.

4

Sarah Burdett. "The Book of Whippingham."

2006. Halsgrove. Whippingham is best known for its connections with Queen Victoria and Osborne House. The village became the centre of the royal estate supporting Osborne and Barton Manors. The author sheds some light on the rich history of Whippingham. The book and dust jacket are both in very good condition. £15.

5

CWR Winter. "Manor Houses of the Isle of Wight."

1984. Dovecote Press. The author lists the 126 Manor Houses in the Island and has added a further 15 medieval manors. He has written a full and interesting account of 26 of them. The book is well illustrated. Green cloth covers and a dust jacket in very good condition. £65.

6

HRH The Duchess of York with Benita Stoney." Victoria and Prince Albert. Life at Osborne House."

1991. Weidenfeld and Nicolson. The relationship between Queen Victoria and Prince Albert is explored in the home that they created in the Isle of Wight. Book and dust jacket are in very good condition. £22.

7

R.B. Adams. "Red Funnel and Before."

1986. Kingfisher Railway Productions. The book records the history of the 'Southampton, Isle of Wight and South of England Royal Mail Steam Packet Company." Well illustrated. The book and dust jacket in very good condition. £15.

8

Vicky Basford. "Historic Parks and Gardens of the Isle of Wight."

1980. Isle of Wight County Council Cultural Services Department. Illustrated with colour plates and more illustrations in the text. The book describes the medieval deer parks, the early gardens of Roman times and the later Victorian gardens, many of which no longer survive. Card covers in clean un-creased very good condition. £10.

9

Ron and Pat Winter. "Village Churches of the Isle of Wight."

1987. Forget-me-Not Books. The authors describe in full, twenty-four of the most beautiful Island churches. The book is profusely illustrated with photographs taken by Pat Winter. The architecture of each building and the people who built them is covered. The book and dust jacket are in very good condition. £12. Card covered edition also vg condition £8.

10

Pennethorne Hughes. "The Isle of Wight."

1968. Faber and Faber. This is one of the collectable 'Shell Guides.' Well illustrated with quality photographs that make this series so enjoyable. It is interesting to see the changes and the status quo around the Island since the book was published in 1968. Book and dust jacket are in very good condition. £12.

11

Bernice Slater. "Royal London Yacht Club 1838-1938."

1988. Published by the Royal London Yacht Club. One of the oldest yacht clubs in Britain. This is a one hundred and fifty year history of the club that was hitherto little known. With premises in London and Cowes, the club has an enviable history. Book and dust jacket in very good condition. £25.

12

Johanna Jones. "Castles to Cottages."

2000. Dovecote Press. The story of Isle of Wight houses. An astonishing range of houses, Roman villas, mediaeval castle, Elizabethan manor houses, Georgian mansions, seaside villas et al. Card covered in mint condition. £10.

13

Flora Fraser. "Maud. The Diaries of Maud Berkeley."

1985. Secker and Warburg. In the world of the Isle of Wight, Maud Berkeley is followed by the reader on her adventures, on walks, picnics, dances and into amateur dramatics on the island and more. This Victorian diary is superbly illustrated by the diarist. Book and dust wrapper in very good condition. £12.

14

Robin McInnes. “Isle of Wight Illustrated."

1989. Crossprint. Limited subscribers hardback edition, numbered 398 of 500 published copies. A fresh and very readable account of the most interesting aspects of the Isle of Wight still today. This is the hardest of the Robin McInnes books to find. The book and dust jacket are in very good condition. £85.

15

Guy Cole.(Ed.) "Best of Uffa."

1978. Nautical Publishing. The fifty designs in this book are extracted complete with detailed drawings, photographs and comments by Uffa Fox. The book is in very good condition in a similar price-cut dust jacket. £15. A further 1998 copy edited by Arthur Dixon in similar condition is also available for £20.

16

Rev. T.S.Grimshawe, A.M. "A Memoir of the Rev. Legh Richmond, A.M."

1846. Seeley, Burnside and Seeley, Fleet Street, London. Ten previous editions had already sold when this, the eleventh was published. That is testament alone to the popularity of the man. His connections with the Island are well known. Blue cloth covers with gilt titles to the spine. A nice clean tight copy in very good condition. £15.

17

Bob Fisher. (Ed.) "Beken of Cowes The New Ocean Thoroughbreds."

1988. Harrap. A one hundred strong collection of photographs of the world's most exciting and successful racing yachts of the 1980's. The colour photography is striking as befits the skill of Keith and Kenneth Beken. The book and dust jacket are in very good condition. £20.

18

Richard Newman. "Southern Vectis - The First Sixty Years."

1989. Ensign Publications. The story of the familiar buses and coaches of the Isle of Wight in the 1980's and those from before. Lots of photographs and information. Laminated board covers in very good condition. £15.

19

"Transport in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight."

1973. Hampshire Archivists Group. Lists of records which cover roads bridges, railways, canals, ferries, piers and more in the two counties. Card covers in clean un-creased unmarked very good condition. £10.

20

"Rookley- Memories and Tales of an Island Village."

12003. Rookley Village Book Committee. Personal memories and local records combine in this 170 page tribute to the people and their village. Nicely illustrated. Card covers in clean, un-creased very good condition. £10.

21

Peter Paye. "Isle of Wight Railways Remembered."

1984. Oxford Publishing. This is Peter Paye's second album, consisting of Isle of Wight railway pictures which he has collected over the years. The book and dust jacket are in very good condition. £12.

22

R.J.Maycock and R.Silsbury. "The Piers, Tramways and Railways at Ryde."

2005. Oakwood Press. One of the five Isle of Wight railway books published by the Oakwood Press. Ryde is the principal entry point to the island and as such, the communications to and from the town have lots of interest. This book records it faithfully. Book and dust jacket are in very good condition. £14.

23

R.J. Maycock and R.Silsbury. "The Isle of Wight Railway."

1999. Oakwood Press. Another of the five Isle of Wight railway books published by the Oakwood Press. This is the first time that a serious attempt has been made to chart the history of the Isle of Wight Railway Company in detail. Book and dust jacket are in very good condition. £16.

24

P.C. Allen and A.B. Macleod. "Rails in the Isle of Wight.”

1986. Wight Locomotive Society. A new edition of the original publication, two decades previously. Well illustrated with splendid photographs and technical detail in the appendix. Book and dust jacket in very good condition. £12.

25

Jack and Johanna Jones. "The Isle of Wight. An Illustrated History"

1987. Dovecote Press. First edition. The book has become a firm favourite with collectors and readers alike. Well written and photographed by this husband and wife team. The book and d/w are in vgc. £15.

26

Ian Dear. "The Royal Ocean Racing Club. The First 75 Years."

2000. Adlard Coles. The history of the club from its inception in 1925 to the beginning of the new millennium. Illustrated with 16 pages of colour and 130 pages of black and white photographs. Book and dust jacket in mint condition. £20.

27

Andrew Britton. "Once Upon A Line. Volumes 1, 2, 3 and 4."

1983,1984,1990 and 1994. Oxford Publishing Company. A complete set. What started as a chance remark in 1979, resulted in the publication of these four volumes. Recognised by some as the ultimate Isle of Wight railway books, this is social as well as railway history, both anecdotal and with reminiscences by the staff who worked the lines. All preserved in print now for us to enjoy. All four volumes in very good condition with dust wrappers, available as a set for £60.

28

Graham Ovenden. (Ed.) "A Victorian Album. Julia Margaret Cameron and her Circle."

1975. Secker and Warburg. A facsimile copy of an early beautiful photograph album. 119 photographs reproduced with skill depicting the work of Julia Margaret Cameron and featuring those very close to her. The book and dust jacket are in very good condition. £30.

29

Fred Mew. "Back of the Wight."

1974. County Press. Yarns of wrecks and smuggling in the true tradition of the 'Back of the Island' This edition is a hardback copy with dust wrapper in very good condition at £6. There is a vg card covered copy also available at £4.

30

J Samuel White & Co. Ltd. "White's of Cowes Shipbuilders."

nd. c1948. Published by J Samuel White. Printed privately. Probably never sold as new, but were presented as mementoes or gifts. This book details the history of the shipbuilding family and the development and success of the Cowes shipbuilding firm. The covers are grey with silver decoration in very good condition. £55.

31

David Swinstead. "The Bembridge Redwings."

 

1997. Cross Publishing. This copy is numbered 163 of a limited publication of 500 copies. Illustrated by Cavendish Morton. This is the one hundred year history of the island small class of keel boat, that was designed in 1896. It was 1938 when replacement hulls were designed and sixteen new Redwings took to the water. Book and dust wrapper in very good condition. £30

32

E. F. Laidlaw. "The Story of the Royal National Hospital Ventnor."

1990. Crossprint. Conceived in 1867, founded in 1868 and opened in 1869. The hospital was renamed as the 'Royal Hospital for Diseases of the Chest.' which was prevalent in the 1860's. Dr Hassall described the Under cliff and Ventnor as favourable climatically for the treatment of respiratory diseases. Card covers in very good condition. £10.

33

Norman Parker. "Parkhurst Tales."

1996. Smith Gryphon. Stories from behind the locked gates of one of Britain's toughest jails. The author spent time in Parkhurst prison as a con and relates his stories from his time mixing with the hardest cases behind bars. Book and dust jacket in very good condition. £8.

34

E F Laidlaw. "A History of Isle of Wight Hospitals."

1994. Cross Publishing. Dr Eric Laidlaw provides a series of fascinating snapshots of an important aspect of the Island's history. Some interesting maps of the locations of the smaller Island hospitals, ie Ryde Isolation Hospital. This copy is in card covers which are clean and un-creased in very good condition. £10.

35

Brian Hinton. "Message to Love."

1995. Castle Communications. The Isle of Wight Festivals. 1968-1969-1970. Pop festivals of the late sixties were new and exciting. They weren't awfully well run and this was part of the magic. They are fondly remembered today and can never be repeated, try as we may. The author has captured the atmosphere brilliantly. Card covers in very good condition. £15.

36

Ian Dear. "The Royal Yacht Squadron 1815-1985."

1985. Stanley Paul. The history of one of the worlds most exclusive clubs through 170 colourful years. Full of characters and many photographs, the history can be enjoyed as much as the yachting itself. Book and dust wrapper in very good condition. £20.

37

"Souvenir of the Isle of Wight."

1897. Published by T. Nelson & Sons. Twenty four chromo views of Isle of Wight towns, Antiquities and Objects of interest. The plates are in exceptional condition with minimal foxing which is unusual for this book. It is without inscription or other defect. Blue decorated boards with gilt titles and decoration. Light shelf wear only. In very good condition. £75.

38

G.J. Jeans. "Memorials of Old Hampshire."

1906. Bemrose and Sons. Twenty five illustrations and photographs. A list of subscribers at the rear of the book. White boards with gilt titles, the spine is darkened but the titles are clear. A tight copy in very good condition. £15.

39

C W R Winter. "The Ancient Town of Yarmouth."

1981. Isle of Wight County Press. Yarmouth is a town that holds itself in a special place in history as a unique port in the Isle of Wight. Illustrated with photographs. Book and dust wrapper in very good condition. £12.50.

40

David M Martill and Darren Naish. "Dinosaurs of the Isle of Wight."

2001. The Paleontological Association. 433 pages, well illustrated with photographs and drawings. Card covers in a clean un-creased unmarked very good condition. £12.

41

Barry Groves.(Ed.) "Scouting on the Isle of Wight."

2007. Packed full with information about the Island Scouts' history, activities and people. Very well illustrated. In soft covers which are clean, unmarked and un-creased in very good condition. £8.

42

Charlotte Cowdery. "Island Leaflets."

1871. Longmans, Green and Co. Poetry. 160 pages of Victorian poems, two pages of Isle of Wight patrons subscribing to the work. Brown cloth covers with gilt titles and decorations. There is an inscription dated 1874 which does not detract from the presentation of the book at all. In very good condition. £45.

43

Robert T Lawn. ""Old Time Characters of the Isle of Wight."

1993. Navigator Books. Recollections of some of the characters of Newport and other towns and villages in the Island in the early 1900's. Card covers in clean unmarked very good condition. £10.

44

"Ordnance Survey Map of the Appledurcombe area of the Isle of Wight."

1866.Ordnance Survey. First edition of this scarce six inch scale map, centred on Appledurcombe. The area covered extends to Kingston and Chale Green in the west, to the north of Godshill, to St Martin’s Down and a part of Ventnor in the west and south of Whitwell. The map sections are complete and intact, but along one folding crease, the linen has almost separated. Otherwise in very good condition. £45.

45

Rev. J Cecil Hughes. "The Geological Story of the Isle of Wight."

1922. Edward Stanford. Illustrations of fossils by Maud Neal. There is a coloured geological map. The book is intended to be an introduction to the science of geology, based on the geology of the Isle of Wight. The book has blue cloth boards with gilt titles, in very good condition. £15.

46

Alan G Parker. "Isle of Wight Local History- A Guide to Sources."

1975. IW Teachers Centre. The definitive IW guide for publications on every source of local information. For general aspects of topography and history, it is an invaluable guide. Card covers, spiral bound in very good condition. £37.50.

47

Tony Molyneaux & Kevin Robertson. "Final Years of Isle of Wight Steam."

2007. Ian Allan. A record of the final years of the Ryde to Ventnor and Ryde to Cowes lines. This book should evoke some happy memories of the O2 class active in the 1960's on those lines. Laminated boards in very good condition. £12.

48

Adrian Searle. "Isle of Wight at War. 1939-1945."

1989. Dovecote Press. The first book to document the history of the Isle of Wight in text and photographs during World War 2. Well illustrated with photographs. Book and dust wrapper in very good condition. £24.

49

A T Gilliam. "Wight Air Wrecks."

2002. Tempus. Many crashes were WW2 wartime, but many were peacetime too. This book is a definitive history of those crashes from pioneer days to the present. Card covers in very good condition. £12.

50

S.P.B. Mais. "Isle of Wight Britain's Sunniest Spot."

1937. Isle of Wight Chamber of Commerce. 148 pages, paper covers, illustrated with additional advertising material, mainly for seasonal accommodation. Map at the front. The paper covers are worn around the edges, but internally a tight copy. £10.

51

Isle of Wight Federation of Women’s Institutes. "Isle of Wight Within Living Memories.”

1994. Countryside Books. Stories, memories and anecdotes collected by the Isle of Wight members and recorded here. 256 pages. Card covers in a clean and un-creased very good condition. £8.50.

52

Adrian Searle. "Seaview Pier. The Case History."

1981. Isle of Wight County Press. Opened in the summer of 1881 and the island still boasted six piers 100 years later. The pier at Seaview was a chain pier that lasted until December 1951.The author tells us of the plans for the pier, its prescence and its decline. In illustrated card covers in a clean un-creased, unmarked very good condition. £6.

53

Oliver Frazer. "The Natural History of the Isle of Wight."

 

1990. Dovecote Press. An illustrated account of the most fascinating and diverse natural histories in the British Isles. Card covers in very good clean, un-creased condition. £10.

54

Dom. S F Hockey. "The Cartulary of Carisbrooke Priory."

1981. Isle of Wight Records Office. This is Volume 2 in the series. There is a map to the endpapers. The cartulary sheds much light on to the early history of the Isle of Wight. Green cloth covers with a dust wrapper in very good condition. £20.

55

Ward Lock & Co. (Pubs.) "The Isle of Wight."

1926-1927.Twentyfirst edition, with over one hundred illustrations, a map of the island and street plans of Island towns. These annual guides were published from the 1870's through to 1981. They were revised and updated every year and form a very important record of the changing face of the Isle of Wight over a 100 year period. This copy is in very good condition. £12. Other copies from other years available.

56

Raymond L Wheeler. "From River to Sea."

1993. Cross Publishing. The maritime heritage of Sam Saunders. This the history of the East Cowes Saunders Roe firm from its origins in 1830 to the year of publication. The book traces the early days on the mainland to the move to East Cowes. The book and dust wrapper are both in very good condition. £35.

57

A E Tagg and R L Wheeler. "From Sea to Air."

1989. Cross Publishing. The maritime heritage of Sam Saunders. This book traces the history of the East Cowes firm of Saunders Roe from the late 1920's when the company was formed. This copy in very good condition. £17.50.

58

A.Blackburn and J.Mackett. "The Freshwater Yarmouth and Newport Railway."

1966. Branch-Line Handbooks. The authors tell of the history, operation, mishaps etc of this railway company in this 66 page booklet in card wraps. There is a single inscription to the inside of the front cover. A good copy of this now scarce book. £12.

59

"Bird's Eye View of the Isle of Wight."

No Date. Published by J Briddon at Ventnor, so late 1800's. A paper map drawn by Arthur William Fowles, marine artist of Ryde. Engraved by Lewis Becker in London. The map is contained within green card wraps with a plate to the front. The map itself is complete, worn to the folds with no tears or repairs. The wraps are in good condition. £20.

60

Robin McInnes. "A Picturesque Tour of the Isle of Wight."

1993. Cross Publishing. Subscribers Edition. No. 604 of 750. There is a subscribers list to the rear of the book. The author takes us on a journey around the Island with an eye firmly fixed on the past. Excellent illustrations abound. Book and dust jacket are in very good condition. £30.

This is just a taste of Isle of Wight books available from wightbooks.co.uk Please don't hesitate to ask if you are looking for another title. There are hundreds of books and booklets in to hand.

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