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Category: 20th century cartography

From Childhood Fancy to Space Age Discovery

Posted by: Julie Stoner

This is a guest post by Geography and Map Division summer intern, Wayne Hastings, who worked on processing and housing the John Parr Snyder Collection. Imagine this. During the summer of 1972, the United States was in the midst of one of the most wildly impressive eras of technological and scientific development – the Space …

single sheet map from series

Early 20th Century Survey of Egypt Provincial Series Now Online

Posted by: Carissa Pastuch

In 1899, British geologist Henry G. Lyons (1864–1944) began a systematic reassessment of the cadastral surveys conducted in Egypt under Ottoman Turkish rule. His updated survey was built upon 90 years of work—starting in 1813 when Muʿallim Ghali, a finance minister appointed by Muhammad ʿAli Basha (1769–1849), reorganized the finances of Egypt to optimize taxation. …

Insets of the Mexican War, McClellan's Peninsular Campaign and Lee's First Northern Invasion.

Eugenia Wheeler Goff: A Cartographer and Educator

Posted by: Cynthia Smith

Women have made significant contributions to the field of cartography throughout history. In celebration of Women’s History Month I have chosen to write about the noted 19th century cartographer, educator, and historian, Eugenia Almira Wheeler Goff. Eugenia Wheeler was born in 1844 in North Clarkson, New York. Her family moved to Winona, Minnesota when she …

Pictorial map of entertainment, restaurant, and speakeasy facilities in the Harlem district, Manhattan, New York City during the Harlem Renaissance..

Mapping “Points of Interest underneath the Harlem Moon”

Posted by: Carissa Pastuch

Elmer Simms Campbell’s pictorial night-club map showing Harlem’s hotspots for entertainment, dining, and drinking appeared as a centerfold in the January 18, 1933, edition of the short-lived weekly Manhattan Magazine. His work was an important contribution to Harlem’s cultural renaissance—it serves as a time capsule—the itinerary and guide of a typical Friday night at the …

Detail of manuscript map of the Bamum kingdom showing mountains, rivers, and roads labeled with Bamum text

Competing Cartographies in Cameroon

Posted by: Amelia Raines

In 1884-85, a group of European dignitaries met in Berlin and delineated the boundaries of French, British, Belgian, Portuguese, Italian, Spanish, and German colonies on the continent of Africa. Lines drawn on the map became administrative reality, and over the next few decades European governments busied themselves with exploring, surveying, and conquering their new territories. One …

Three maps of Japan that shows the distribution of earthquakes.

Mapping Magnitude: The Evolution of Earthquake Maps

Posted by: Sonia Kahn

Did you know that worldwide, roughly 55 earthquakes are recorded per day? Of course, the vast majority of these seismic events are minor, making it all the more impressive that we are able to detect them. The technology used to gather data on earthquakes and seismic movements has vastly improved over time, and with it …