The Crossing of a Continent
Posted by: Julie Stoner
A post about Alexander Mackenzie and the first known trans continental crossing of North America.
Posted in: 18th century cartography, Exploration
Category: Exploration
Who drew the Map with Ship?
Posted by: Cynthia Smith
Featured below is a map known as the “Map with Ship.” The map was donated to the Library of Congress in 1943 by a retired merchant and author named Marcian F. Rossi. Marcian Rossi was born in Italy in 1870. He moved to the United States during the 1880s. The Rossi family inherited a collection …
Posted in: Asian History, European History, Exploration
New Interactive Map Visualizes Ship Logbooks from the 18th and 19th Centuries
Posted by: Tim St. Onge
Our new interactive map showcases the Climatological Database for the World's Oceans 1750-1850, an exciting digital acquisition of the Library of Congress.
Posted in: Big Data and Visualization, Exploration, Geography and Map Division
Improvements in Geography: An 18th-Century Map of North Africa
Posted by: Amelia Raines
In 1798, James Rennell, an English cartographer primarily known for his maps of British territories in India and South Asia, published A map shewing the progress of discovery & improvement, in the geography of North Africa. This map combined geographical information gathered from sources spanning more than 1.5 millennia, from recent explorers all the way …
Posted in: 18th century cartography, African History, European History, Exploration
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 …
Posted in: 19th century cartography, 20th century cartography, African History, Borders, European History, Exploration
Little Atlas, Big World
Posted by: Amelia Raines
In 1764, Le petit atlas maritime – “the little maritime atlas” – was published in Paris. Consisting of 5 volumes, each about 14 inches tall and containing 581 maps in total, Le petit atlas maritime is not particularly little. Its subject matter, in fact, is expansive: individual volumes are dedicated to maps of North America and the …
Posted in: 18th century cartography, African History, American History, European History, Exploration
Mapping the Land of Fire and Ice
Posted by: Cynthia Smith
Early maps of Iceland are compelling, they are often embellished with sea monsters and pictorials. Modern maps of the country are equally interesting because of the unique shape and terrain of the island. Iceland, with its glaciers and volcanoes, is accurately nicknamed the “Land of Fire and Ice.” The maps of Iceland featured in this …
Posted in: 16th century cartography, 17th century cartography, 19th century cartography, European History, Exploration
Winds of (Ex)Change in the Indian Ocean
Posted by: Amelia Raines
Take a look at this monsoon chart, paying special attention to the western Indian Ocean between the east coast of Africa and the west coast of India, and you might notice a pattern: The left chart depicts the prevailing winds in the Indian Ocean in February; the right, in August. In winter, a sea of …
Posted in: 16th century cartography, 17th century cartography, 19th century cartography, African History, Asian History, Exploration
The Matron of Mesopotamian Antiquities
Posted by: Carissa Pastuch
Gertrude Lowthian Bell (1868–1926) was a British archaeologist, explorer, and diplomat. Proficient in French, German, Hebrew, Persian, and Arabic, and an avid reader and writer, she traveled widely and was able to engage with native populations because of her ability to communicate in many languages and openness to experiencing unfamiliar traditions. She found the Middle …
Posted in: 19th century cartography, Exploration, Women's History