From Track to By-Pass T. W. Wilkinson 1934 First Edition Road History
 
Bibliographic Details
Title: From Track to By-Pass: A History of the English Road
Author: T. W. Wilkinson
Illustrated: With 39 photogravure plates and 15 illustrations in the text, including a frontispiece of Two of the Devil's Arrows, Boroughbridge. All 39 plates and 15 text illustrations are present and checked.
Publisher: Methuen & Co. Ltd.
Place: 36 Essex Street, W.C., London
Printer: Printed in Great Britain
Date: 1934
Edition: First published / First Edition
This is marked as first published on the date imprint page. The first-edition status is supported by specialist bibliographical and bookseller records, which identify the 1934 Methuen issue as the first edition. The recorded collation is xvi, 240 pages, with 39 plates and 15 illustrations in the text, matching the principal bibliographical details of this copy. 
 
Historical & Bibliographical Context
Wilkinson's book traces the development of the English road from prehistoric routes through Roman roads, medieval roads and bridges, Tudor and Stuart roads, turnpikes and Georgian highways to the modern road and the emergence of the by-pass.
The subject places the book at an interesting intersection of transport history, British topography, archaeology and social history. The chapters consider not simply road construction, but the people and activities associated with roads, including pack and saddle transport, restrictions on traffic, travellers' guides, guideposts and milestones, and the changing relationship between roads, settlements and travel.
The book was published during a period when motor transport was transforming the British landscape. Its final chapter, The Revival of the Road: Modern Developments, consequently, places centuries of road history against the rapidly changing road system of the early twentieth century.
The contemporary reception was favourable. Nature described the work as both entertaining and educational, noting Wilkinson's knowledge of his subject and his affection for the roads of rural England. It also recorded the original publication price of 10s. 6d. 
The book remains particularly appealing to collectors of British roads, transport history, English topography, milestones, bridges, travel and local history. A later publication of the Milestone Society also cites Wilkinson's 1934 work as a reference for the history of English milestones. 
 
About the Author
T. W. Wilkinson was an author of works on British roads and transport, with an interest extending to the historical development of England's highways and associated features such as milestones, bridges and routes.
 
About the Illustrations
The book's visual appeal derives principally from its 39 photogravure plates, supplemented by 15 illustrations in the text, including maps and historical road scenes.
 
Binding & Exterior
Original green cloth binding over boards and spine, with gilt lettering to the spine. The binding remains intact and robust, with light or very small marks, very soft bumping to the corners and a very small split at the head of the spine.
 
Interior Condition
There is light foxing, predominantly towards the front of the book and including the title page, with the pages otherwise lightly tanned and generally neat and clean. There are only occasional small creases and a few small edge tears to the half-title, which are minimal.
There is a small pen inscription on the front free endpaper and a little pencil to the overleaf. The 39 photogravure plates and 15 illustrations in the text are all present and checked. The book is complete, with all pages secure and tightly bound.
 
Physical Details
Pages: xvi + 240 pages, plus Methuen's General Literature Catalogue
Illustrations: 39 photogravure plates and 15 illustrations in the text
Dimensions: Approximately 19 × 13 × 3.1 cm
Weight: Approximately 423 grams.