By the Western Sea was the very first book published by the new firm of D. P. Elder and Morgan Shepard in 1898. The cover artwork and lettering, by Morgan Shepard, features an ocean wave design wrapping around the spine onto the back cover.
Samuel Marshall Ilsley was a Santa Barbara poet and playwright, the first of several authors published via Shepard’s connections in Santa Barbara. Aside from being a family friend of Morgan Shepard’s wife, Mary, Ilsley was also the first cousin of writer Charles Keeler. In 1896, Ilsley had accompanied Mary’s sister, Katherine Putnam, and Katherine’s daughter, Marian, on a long trip to Italy, part of which became the travelogue, Wayfarers in Italy.
Reviews of By the Western Sea were pleasant but not enthusiastic. The book was printed at the Murdock Press, a firm that often printed Elder & Shepard’s publications before the creation of the Tomoyé Press in 1903.
Updated 2025-12-22
