The Wild West: Johnson's Washington and Oregon of 1861

On a trip through the U.S. Pacific northwest, I bought this example of Johnson's Washington and Oregon from 1861.

I wasn't able to get a great image of it because it's framed, but there's a great 'zoomable' photo of the same map here.

I originally bought this map because it was the best one I could find of the region while in the region. I found it quite attractive and interesting, but perhaps a bit plain. The more I study it though, the more I've come to like it.

 The map does have some nice aesthetic features, for example the decorative border, the map spilling out of its border and the textured way in which the mountains are drawn. It also has that somehow strange feature of showing not only the longitude from Greenwich, but also from Washington, D.C.

The map has quite a bit of space with little on it other than lakes, rivers, mountains and the occasional fort. It gives a sense that this is a frontier region. It makes the area on the map feel more vast, more difficult to access and it makes the west coast, which does have more towns indicated, seem like more of a goal to reach. As though it's a slice of civilization across a land-sea of tough wilderness. This is somehow also enhanced by showing a proposed route for a railway line.



More interesting than some of the aesthetic features of the map, I find, are the political elements, and the elements of the map that did not exist in 1861 but that today would not only be present, but would be prominent.

The most obvious is the shape and existence of states and territories. Washington sort of wraps around and embraces Oregon. Idaho is just not there, and instead, Washington borders the Nebraska Territory. Montana is a figment of someone's imagination and is not on this map.

To the south of Oregon, the map does depict California, which borders the Utah Territory and all throughout over areas of otherwise blank map, we see the names of first nations tribes that lived in that territory. Prominent are "Shoshones or Snakes", "Punashly" and "Nez Perces".

Of particular interest to me are the areas that are now Canada, marked only as "British Possessions". This is not meant to be a map of Canada or the British possessions to the north, but there are still some great details there. The blanket label "British Possessions" is alone an interesting historical element. These regions would not even become part of Canada 6 years later during Confederation. They joined the country much later. Another detail I like is that, though there is a Seattle, and a Victoria (now British Columbia) on the map, there is no Vancouver. This is because what is now one of Canada's largest and most prominent cities was not settled until 1862, the year after this map was published.

One more detail about this map that I personally like is the absence of the town of Great Falls, Montana. I've never been to Great Falls, but my late grandmother spent some of her childhood there, and spoke about it fondly. This map shows only that there are falls at the site (just below the "e" in territory of the "Nebraska Territory"), but there's no settlement. The city where my grandmother watched the celebrations for the end of World War One, was not founded until the early 1880's.

5 Ways to Start Building a Map Collection or, a Beginner's Thoughts on "a Beginner's Guide" to Map Collecting

I came across this post on the Map Room Blog. In it, the author of the Map Room makes a few short comments about this article, in which the author talks about his new-found passion for collecting maps, specific British Ordinance Survey maps.

It made me realize a few things: 1) People collect maps that aren't necessarily old 2) there are dozens of ways to structure a map collection.

Honestly, the thought of collecting new maps, and things like road maps, has little appeal to me. I do love looking at maps of all kinds, but collecting, for me, means old, antique or otherwise unique maps.

I thought--especially in light of the upcoming Miami International Map Fair--I'd provide a list of things a new map-collector may want to consider when structuring or curating their collection. Of course, take your advice from who it comes: I'm an amateur and have my own reasons for collecting!

1)  Location Depicted: some people may want to collect only maps of a specific location. This allows you to build a collection that is deep, but potentially narrow. If you choose some place in Europe, your collection could potentially be quite large and cover a very long period of time, showing evolution over time.

2)  Location Made: Different countries have different traditions of map making. It's sometimes fascinating to see how, at different periods of time, some maps from different countries will show the same place quite differently. It's also sometimes fascinating to see maps of familiar places labeled in different languages. Some maps even show longitude differently, based on a place like Washington D.C. or Paris, instead of Greenwich.

3)  Age: Some people only want old maps. Some people, like the author of the article the Map Room commented on, only want relatively recent maps. I can see how--especially those with money--could be attracted to medieval maps, or original maps of early exploration, while others may prefer maps of the Victorian era, or from the colonial period of one country or another.

4)  Cartographer: Some map makers, like Blaeu, Mitchell, Johnston and Colton are well known and prolific, though some are rarer than others. I can see how someone may fall in love with a certain style (Blaeu's maps are particularly beautiful) and just want to amass as many maps by the same map maker as possible.

Blaeu's maps are undeniably gorgeous

5)  Specific Attributes: I realize this is a broad category, but there are so many ways to curate a collection that choosing a common element for all the maps in your collection is a good way to go. I prefer to collect maps only of places I've actually visited or been to (with rare exceptions). One may also consider a collection of maps linked to their family's genealogy. I've seen auctions for important military maps from various wars, or you can choose only to collect maps with blank spaces on them, or with sea monsters!

Some people may just enjoy maps and collect whatever they come across that tickles their fancy. That's great. For starting out though, I think it's probably worthwhile to have a sense of where you're going with your collection and what you're collecting for. I tend to have a good idea of the kinds of maps I want. That said, I can't pass up a dusty old book or map shop without going in to browse, even if I don't think they'll have what I want. The hunt is so much of the fun!