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Archive: November 2021 (3 Posts)

The map shows both the planned itinerary of La PeĢrouse and the routes of the principal European voyages in the Pacific up to the 1780s.

“Pérouse”-ing the Pacific

Posted by: Carissa Pastuch

Jean-François de Galaup La Pérouse (1741–88) was a French naval officer and explorer, known for his discoveries in the Pacific, particularly off the northern coasts of America and Asia, and for his tragic demise near Vanikoro in the Santa Cruz Islands (present-day Solomon Islands) in 1788. Born in Albi, France, La Pérouse joined the French …

A stick chart of the Marshall Islands.

The Unique Seafaring Charts of the Marshall Islands

Posted by: Cynthia Smith

The Geography and Map Division holds thousands of vintage and antique nautical charts. Among the most compelling navigational charts in our holdings are the traditional stick charts of the Marshall Islands. The first time that I saw them, displayed in shadow boxes, I thought they looked like striking works of modern art. My curiosity led …

Map sheet that shows a portion of the Niger River with vegetation and towns marked along the banks.

A Trip Down the Niger River

Posted by: Amelia Raines

In 1887, a French lieutenant named Edmond Caron sailed a gunboat down the Niger River to gather information and expand French influence in the western Sahel. After setting out from the colonial capital in Saint-Louis, on the Atlantic coast of Senegal, he traveled inland to the Inner Niger Delta of modern central Mali, an area …