Each passage in this volume is transcribed exactly from the original source indicated at the beginning of the chapter. Misspellings, spelling variants, as well as grammatical and typographical errors follow the original sources. Punctuation varied from author to author, but all used commas more frequently than standard usage today; usage of colons and semi-colons also varied from contemporary practice. With few exceptions, errors in fact are reprinted without editorial comments.
The copies of the originals used in this volume are held by the Library of Congress or by the Special Collections, Ralph Brown Draughon Library, Auburn University. Most of the travel books are available online and at large university libraries.