Melish, John “View of the Country round the Falls of Niagara”

John Melish.  “View of the Country round the Falls of Niagara.”  From A Geographical Description of the United States.  

Philadelphia: J. Melish, 1822.  6 5/8 x 4.  Engraving by J. Vallance.  Very good condition. 

A small map of the vicinity of Niagara Falls by one of the seminal figures in the history of American cartography.  John Melish was the first American publisher to issue exclusively cartographic and geographic items.  Born in Scotland and involved in the textile industry, Melish visited the United States several times beginning in 1806, finally deciding to settle there in 1811.  Melish had made many notes on his travels about the country and in 1812 he published Travels in the United States of America, which included his first maps and which started him on his cartographic career.  Melish came to dominate the industry in this country, and had a huge impact on all subsequent American mapping.  Beginning in 1816, Melish issued his Geographical Description, which contained extensive information about the entire United States and surrounding regions.  In 1822, Melish issued a considerably expanded edition, which included 12 engraved regional maps of considerable note.  This map shows from the source of the Niagara River at Buffalo to the mouth at Fort Niagara on Lake Ontario.  Sites of battles, towns, and roads are shown with impressive detail.