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Other map pages
[ 19th Century U.S. regional maps ]
[ Locations | Map themes & related | Cartographers ]
Franz Ludwig Güssefeld. "Charte über die XIII vereinigte Staaten von Nord-America." Nuremberg: Homann Heirs 1784. 17 1/2 x 22 1/2. Engraving. Original hand color. Very good condition.
This is an early example of a map that recognized the nascent United States of America. The map shows North America to just across the Mississippi River, but the focus is on the new nation. Each state is colored in a contrasting pastel and the states in the northern part are named by way of a lettered key given just below the attractive title cartouche. The borders are in general pretty good, though Vermont is not shown, being included as part of New Hampshire, and Maryland's western parts extend well south into Virginia. The treatment of the lands to the west of the Appalachian Mountains and up to the Mississippi River is quite interesting. This area is indicated as lands that came to the United States by the Treaty of 1783. It is mostly undifferentiated politically, though dotted lines coming off of the states of the southeast do extend to the Mississippi, showing the claims of those states. Rivers, towns, and some forts are shown, and Indian tribes are named throughout. One odd feature is the appearance of a very large area of marshy land along the Wabash. All in all, this attractive map is a fascinating view of the new nation. $1,400
Samuel Dunn. "A New Map of the United States of North America with the British Dominions on that Continent &c." London: Robert Sayer, 1786. 18 1/2 x 12. Engraving. Full original color. Very good condition. Stevens & Tree, 53d.
A nice example of Dunn's excellent map of the United States issued shortly after the founding of the country. This map reflects the changed situation for the British government in relation to its former colonies after the war; the use of the term "United States" was relatively new for any European power to place on a map. The western boundaries of most of the states were left open. Florida was depicted as the Spanish provinces of "East" and "West" while "Louisiana" was that great trans-Mississippi area that titularly and temporarily belonged to Spain. In the upper left corner is a table which lists the lands of the United States (listing the thirteen original states, Vermont as the newest state, and "all the Lands between the Lakes, the Apalaches and the Missisipi") and three the British dominions ("Territories of the Hudson Bay Company," "Province of Quebec and Canada," and "Newfoundland.") Notes within the map area show many Indian tribal lands and closes any argument for a northwest passage. This map is a striking document for the history of science and political history of North America. $1,600
John Reid. "An Accurate Map of the United States of America. according to the Treaty of Peace of 1783." From The American Atlas. New York: Smith, Reid, and Wayland, 1796. Second state. 14 1/8 x 17 3/4. Engraving by A. Anderson. Very good condition. Wheat & Brun: 135.
An important eighteenth-century, American made map of the United States. This map was issued in Reid's landmark American Atlas in 1796, which was published to accompany William Winterbotham's An historical, geographical, commercial, and philosophical view of the United States of America. This atlas was one of the first American atlases, and the maps from it represent the best of the nascent American cartographic industry. The map has surprisingly good information on the United States, shown extending to the Mississippi River. Reid pays particular attention to the border of the country, "according to the Treaty of Peace of 1783." To the south the border is shown separating Georgia-which extends to the Mississippi-from Florida, still owned by the Spanish. The "Twenty Leagues Line" is depicted off the Atlantic Coast, and a rather vague border is shown separating "Main" from Lower Canada. The Maine border was to cause problems for years, as was the border to the west of the Great Lakes, marked here running up to Lake of Woods. The political situation in the old Northwest Territory is shown surprisingly up-to-date. The Ohio Company and Army Lands in the southeast part of present-day Ohio is exhibited, as are lands to be settled by the "New Jersey Company," and "Wabash Company" in the south of present-day Illinois. A note across the Northwest Territory reads "Divided into 10 States by a Resolve of Congress in 1784." There is much other fascinating information on this map, which represents the best of American cartography at the end of the eighteenth century. $1,100
John Russell. "An Accurate Map of the United States of America according to the Treaty of Paris of 1783" From William Winterbotham's View of the United States. London: H.D. Symonds, 1794. 14 1/8 x 18. Engraving. With folds as issued. Minor blemish near cartouche; else very good condition.
An detailed map of the new United States prior to its boundaries extending beyond the Mississippi River. It was issued in Winterbotham's important account of the new country. Detail is quite impressive with rivers, lakes, and settlements clearly depicted throughout. The information on the western parts of the country is of particular interest. Various land claim companies formed for Revolutionary War veterans are shown in the west along with indications of Indian tribal lands. Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota are not yet shown as states. The river systems are given prominence due to their importance as the major transportation routes. A fascinating map of the United States as it appeared at the time the U.S. Constitution was being written. $775
Mathew Carey after Abraham Bradley. "The United States of America." From American Pocket Atlas. Philadelphia: M. Carey, 1801. 9 3/4 x 12 5/8. Engraving by W. Barker. Cf. Wheat & Brun: 131.
An excellent map of the United States from Carey's American Pocket Atlas of 1801. Unlike many other cartographers of the day, Carey updated his maps in every edition of his atlases, which made his maps as up-to-date as any issued at the time. The maps from the Pocket Atlas are good examples. This map shows what was then Georgia, stretching from the Atlantic coast to the Mississippi, including most of present-day Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. The short lived Mississippi Territory is depicted wedged between Georgia and western Florida. In the Northwest Territory the "Grand Portage" and Bellin's mythical islands are shown at Lake Superior. Information is excellent, showing towns, rivers, and some physical characteristics with a number of names added since the 1796 edition. For instance, in New England, Maine and Vermont are added, with the Canadian border left uncertain. Overall this is an excellent American map based on Abraham Bradley's important compilation. $525
Franz Ludwig Güssefeld. "Charte Der XV Vereinigten Staaten von Nord-America." Weimar, Germany: Geogr. Instituts, 1804. 18 1/2 x 20 3/4. Engraving. Original hand color. Very good condition.
Güssefeld was a German cartographer who had issued a fine, early map of the United States for the Homann Heirs firm in 1784. In the next two decades many changes took place and much interest remained about America in Germany, so he produced this new map for the Geographic Institute in Weimar. The eastern states are shown with considerable accuracy and quite a bit of detail concerning rivers and major settlements, both coastal and inland. The information west of the Appalachians is more spotty, for though Kentucky is shown, Tennessee is not. Georgia is correctly shown in close to its present-day shape, but the Mississippi Territory, which was created in 1804, is not named and includes Tennessee. The Northwest Territory is shown in its original form, even though Ohio had been broken off in 1803. One of the most interesting aspects of this map is the indication, just east of Kentucky, of a non-existent region called of "Franklin." This reflects the one-time 'state' of Franklin, even though it is misplaced too far north, for Franklin was actually in what is today eastern Tennessee. Franklin was formed out of western North Carolina in 1784, with John Sevier appointed as Governor. However, the state was never recognized by Congress and when Sevier's four year term ended (he was later to become the first Governor of Tennessee), the region was again annexed by North Carolina to disappear from history except for in books and on about 20 maps, of which this is one. This demonstrates that despite the interest in America, it was hard for European cartographers to keep their maps up-to-date. This map is a good attempt and it does contain lots of interesting information, very attractively presented. $1,850
John Cary. “A New Map of Part of the United States of North America, Containing those of New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and Virginia.” London: J. Cary, 1806. 18 x 20 1/2 neatlines). Engraving. Full original color. Full margins. Very good condition.
A striking map of much of the early United States by John Cary. Historically, cartographic dominance has followed economic and military dominance, and the period at the beginning of the nineteenth century saw Great Britain dominant in all three areas. The British maps of this period were of excellent quality, with crisp engraving and lovely hand coloring. Topographic information tended to be quite current and well presented. Of the British cartographers at this time, John Cary was amongst the most respected. This map is good evidence of the quality of his work. The map depicts an area from lower Canada down to the borders of Virginia on the south and west. Details are given of rivers, towns, roads, and mountains. The fine engraving and careful differentiation in coloring help to impart the wealth of cartographic information. Altogether, a fascinating map from the transition period between the early surveys of the eighteenth century and the American regional mapping of the following decades. $750
"The United States of America." From Cummings' Ancient & Modern Geography. Boston: Cummings & Hilliard, 1816. 8 1/2 x 11. Engraving by Thomas Wightman. Original outline color. Paper toned. Otherwise, very good condition.
A map of the United States at the end of the War of 1812. The map does contain good information on rivers, lakes and settlements, but it is the political situation which is of the most interest. In the trans-Appalachian region, both Kentucky and Tennessee are shown, and just south is the Mississippi Territory, stretching from Georgia to the Mississippi River. South of this is East and West Florida, also extending to the Mississippi. The old Northwest Territory is depicted broken up into four divisions, with Ohio and Indiana looking familiar, though with their border too far north. Michigan is shown with the upper peninsula, but also a strip of land down the western side of Lake Michigan right to the northern border of Indiana. The entire western part of the old territory, including today's Illinois, most of Wisconsin and Minnesota, is shown as one territory, named "Illinois." The early 19th century was a time of tremendous change in the United States and this map documents that nicely. $425
John Thomson. “Southern Provinces of the United States.” From A New General Atlas. Edinburgh: J. Thomson, 1817. 19 1/2 x 23 1/4. Engraving by Hewitt. Full original hand color. Full margins. Very good condition. Inset view of “Characteristic Scenery of the Hudson River.”
In the early nineteenth century, the British cartographic publishers were producing the finest maps in the world. John Thomson, working in Edinburgh, was one of the leading British cartographers and his maps are good evidence of the quality of work issued in Great Britain at the time. This striking map of the southeastern U.S. is an particularly good example of his work.
It was issued at an interesting period in the history of the American southeast. The state of Georgia is of particular note, for its borders are shown as they were in 1798 just before the Mississippi Territory was established, extending from the Atlantic to the Mississippi. It is not unusual for a British map maker to be late in reflecting internal American information on his maps, but the nearly twenty year lapse here makes one wonder whether Thomson was in fact a Georgian chauvinist. While somewhat anachronistic, the information of settlements, rivers, mountains, and ethnological details is fascinating. Overall, a fine map of the American southeast. $1,200
John Melish. "United States of America." From Carey & Lea's A Complete Historical, Chronological, and Geographical American Atlas. Philadelphia: H.C. Carey & I. Lea, 1822. 17 x 21. Engraving by Benjamin Tanner. Full, original hand coloring. Some trimming to right margin and chipping in top right corner; expertly conserved and filled. Otherwise, very good condition.
In 1822, Henry Charles Carey and Isaac Lea published their A Complete Historical, Chronological, and Geographical American Atlas. This volume was based on Emmanuel Las Cases' Atlas Historique of 1803, with updated maps and text modified by Carey, a political economist. He considered himself an American foil to John Stuart Mill and the London economists who were proclaimers of "the gloomy science" influenced by Ricardo and Malthus. Instead of preaching overpopulation and degeneration of the human species, Carey illustrated the nations of the western hemisphere through maps that showed an expanding region with ample promise of developing into lands of great new opportunity and growth. The sheets from this atlas, which cover North America, Central America, South America and the West Indies, are comprised of an engraved map surrounded by text documenting the history, climate, population and so forth of the area depicted. The atlas is particularly known for its excellent early maps of the states and territories of the United States. This map of the United States and its territories as a whole served as the initial and index map, depicting the nation extending from the Atlantic seaboard to the Rocky Mountains. It is a later edition of the map issued in the Lavoisne atlas of 1821 (cf. above). $1,400
After John Melish. "États-Unis D'Amérique." From Jean Alexandre C. Buchon's Atlas Geographique des deux Ameriques. Paris: J. Carez, 1825. 16 5/8 x 20 7/8. Engraving by Ales. Original hand color. Very good condition.
Three years after Carey & Lea's important American Atlas, Jean Buchon issued his revised, French edition of the atlas. This is the general map of the US from that atlas, based on John Melish's rendering. Michigan is shown as a territory, and present-day Wisconsin and eastern Minnesota are designated as the last of the "Terre. Nord Ouest" The remainder of the Louisiana Territory is shown as the Missouri Territory and the Arkansas Territory. The area of today's plains states is labeled "Grand Désert Américain," derived from Stephen H. Long's important expedition of 1819-20. This map presented the best information on the United States to date and it would have been of much interest to the audience in Europe. $1,100
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19th Century U.S. regional maps
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