Histoire de Don Quichotte, Vols I, II, IV, V, VI, From Cervantes Saavedra, Miguel de. Histoire de l'Admirable Don Quichotte de lat Manche. En VI Volumes. Nouvelle Edition. [Paris?]: Haye & se, 1773. In French. 16mo, full leather, marbled endpapers, red page edges. Five of the six volumes present - Vol. I, II, IV, V, VI. Volumes II, IV, and V have Th: Jefferson to Virginia Randolph in Jefferson's hand on the second free front endpaper, then below in another hand to Wilson Miles Cary below Virginia Randolph. Volume VI has Th: Jefferson to Virginia Randolph twice, both on the second free front endpaper and the second free rear endpaper (written with the volume held upside down), but not inscribed to Cary. Vol. I is missing front cover and first two endpapers, so it is lacking the inscription. The first page present is the half-title. The title page has Wilson Miles Cary at the top, and Carys book just a bit below that, so it is clearly part of the set.
These volumes very likely among the thousands purchased by Jefferson while Minister to France, 1785-1789. Books were always important to Jefferson, who read and wrote in many areas other than politics - natural history, archaeology, architecture, etc. He is considered to have had three libraries - the first inherited from his father in 1757, kept at Shadwell, the family home, and destroyed in a fire in 1770. The second was the large Monticello library, of which nearly 6500 volumes were sold to Congress after that library was burned by the British in the War of 1812. The third was the library started after selling these to Congress - his "Retirement Library." Clearly, some of his Monticello library were also given away, before the sale to Congress.
These were probably given to Virginia Randolph Cary (1786-1852), daughter of Thomas Mann Randolph and Ann Cary Randolph. The Randolphs had twelve children. Virginia's brother, Thomas Mann Randolph, Jr. married Martha Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson's daughter. When her mother died (1789) while Virginia was still a minor, she went to live at Monticello with her brother and sister-in-law, who named one of their children Virginia Jefferson Randolph (1801-1882). The elder Virginia Randolph married her cousin Wilson Jefferson Cary in 1805, and their first child was Wilson Miles Cary (1806-1882), suggesting these were probably given to Virginia Randolph Cary, who then passed them to her son.
This set of books were in the estate of Harrison Baird (probable provenance of the books in caps). Harrison was the son of URSULA FAIRFAX and Charles Baird. Ursula was the daughter of Reginald FAIRFAX HARRISON and Hetty Cary. Fairfax Harrison was the son of Burton Harrison and CONSTANCE CARY. (Constance was also an author. She supported the Confederacy during the war, publishing in Richmond papers under the pen name "Refugitta." She and her cousins also claim to have sewn the first samples of the Confederate Battle Flag.) Constance was the daughter of ARCHIBALD CARY (1815-1854) and Monimia Fairfax. Archibald and Wilson Miles Cary (1806-1877) and four sisters were the offspring of VIRGINIA RANDOLPH (1786-1852), to whom the volumes were given by Jefferson, and Wilson Jefferson Cary (1784-1823).
Condition
Besides the missing front cover, all volumes are in rough condition. They have been wet, especially Vol. VI. All have insect and rodent damage, and the leather is cracking from the boards. Most have good text blocks, with the exception of Vol. II - pages 317 to 343 are badly damaged. Overall Vols. IV and V in the best condition.