Gone With the Wind has been printed over 100 times since it was first published in 1936. That means that there are millions of copies of the book currently circulating. As with most collectible books the most valuable edition of Gone With the Wind is the first printing. The first printing of Gone With the Wind is thought to be limited to around 10,000 copies. This guide will give you the key points of issue for the first printing of the book and first state dust jacket.

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Currently a first printing Gone With the Wind in a first state dust jacket is worth thousands of dollars and a fine condition copy can't be found for less than $10,000 to $15,000, with signed copies bringing even more.

 
A first edition first printing of Gone With the Wind will have gray boards (cover) with blue titles and scrollwork on the front cover and spine as pictured below.

 
If the title and scrollwork do not appear on the front cover and spine, you probably have  a Book Club Edition.

Watch out for the facsimile edition of Gone With the Wind. These books are identical in appearance to the originals, but were printed after 1964. The facsimile editions will have a 1964 copyright notice prominently displayed on the copyright page.

The copyright page of a first edition, first printing will state the following:

 
A Book Club Edition will have a copyright notice like the one below:

 

Note that the year is expressed in Roman numerals at the top of the statement on the Book Club Edition and there is no specific dates (month or year) at the end of the statement..

The copyright notice must state that the book was published in May, 1936. A photograph of the copyright notice from a first printing is pictured below on the left: If the copyright notice shows June, 1936 or any other dates, it is a later printing as shown in the photo on the right.


 
 

Summary of key points from the book for a first printing.

1) Gray cloth binding
2) Title and decorative scrollwork appear on the front cover as well as the spine in blue.
3) 1037 pages of text
4) Text is typeset in a single-column
5) Copyright notice shows the year in Arabic numerals ("1936" rather than Roman Numerals ("MCMXXXVI')
6) May, 1936 is stated to be the month and year published, with no other reprint dates listed

 

Dust Jacket points of issue.

The dust jacket for Gone With the Wind is the most important aspect in regards to value. There are many 1st printing books available without dust jackets or with dust jackets from later printings. A fine first state dust jacket is the key difference between a book that is worth a few hundred to a thousand dollars and one that is worth $10,000 to $15,000 or more. Condition is the key to value, a perfect first state dust jacket alone is worth around $10,000 minimum, while a jacket in poor condition may be worth a few hundred dollars.

The back of the dust jacket contains the primary point of issue for the identification of the first state dust jacket. The key point is that "Gone With the Wind" occupies the second position in the right-hand column of the list of Macmillan Spring Novels.

 
After the first printing, Macmillan moved "Gone With the Wind" to the top of the left-hand column—the most visible position on the page.

A less important point is that the design of the dust jacket's spine remained unchanged over the course of the early printing. In later printings, sometime around 1940, the striping was removed from the dust jacket design.


Authentic Margaret Mitchell signature examples: