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MAP #: 290C6

CARTOGRAPHER : CLARK, MATTHEW

DATE: 1790

SHORT TITLE : CHART OF THE COAST OF AMERICA FROM CAPE HENRY TO ALBEMARLE

REMAINING TITLE & ID : [sic] SOUND (OVAL CARTOUCHE, BOTTOM RIGHT CORNER). "BOSTON PUBLISHED & SOLD BY MATTHEW CLARK" (IN OVAL, BELOW TITLE). "NO 11" (BOTTOM LEFT CORNER). THE MAP CARRIES THE FOLLOWING ENGRAVED INSCRIPTION, SIGNED IN MANUSCRIPT BY OSGOOD CARLETON: "BEING RECOMMENDED BY THE BOSTON MARINE SOCIETY FOR THE PURPOSE OF EXAMINING Mr. CLARKS CHARTS I HAVE CAREFULLY EXAMINED AND COMPARED THIS WITH DES BARRES & HOLLANDS AND OTHER GOOD AUTHORITIES AND FIND IT AN ACCURATE CHART OF THE COAST &c. IT CONTAINS." LONGITUDE WEST FROM LONDON (TOP BORDER). LATITUDE (RIGHT AND LEFT BORDERS).

DATE OF PUBLICATION : S1790
PLACE OF PUBLICATION : BOSTON
PUBLISHER : MATTHEW CLARK
LANGUAGE(S) : EN
SIZE (HEIGHT X WIDTH) : 41.5 X 63.0 CM.
SIZE - OTHER DATA : ? X ? CM. OM
SCALE - (RF) 1: : 316,000
LIB. OF CONGRESS # : -
Md. HALL OF RECORDS # 1 : MSA SC1399-520(REPRO)
HFC ACQ. PRIORITY : 3
HUNTINGFIELD ACQ. # 1 : -
REGION CATEGORY : CHART IN WHICH THE MD/CHESAPEAKE AREA IS ONE MAIN FOCUS (1)
SPECIAL CATEGORY(IES) :
# SHEETS TO MAP : 1
MAP ORIENTATION : N IS AT THE TOP OF THE MAP
RELIEF SHOWN ? : YES
HYDROGRAPHIC DATA : SHOALS ARE SHOWN BY DOTTED LINES.
: SOUNDINGS ARE SHOWN IN FATHOMS AND FEET.
CARTOUCHE : OVAL (21)
BORDER : GEOGRAPHICALLY FUNCTIONAL (8)
PRIME MERIDIAN(S) : LONDON (1)
SEE ALSO MAP #s : 290C4, 290C5.
BEST INFO SOURCE : WHEAT & BRUN AND PHILLIPS ATLASES ARE THE BEST FOUND.
DESCRIPTION : THIS IS THE SOUTHERNMOST OF THREE CHARTS THAT COVER THE CHESAPEAKE BAY AREA (SEE ALSO MAPS # 290C4 AND 290C5). THEY APPEARED AS THREE OF 18 CHARTS IN A PUBLICATION, WITHOUT TITLE PAGE, COVERING THE AREA OF THE EAST COAST OF AMERICA FROM CAPE BRETON TO THE ENTRANCE TO THE GULF OF MEXICO, PUBLISHED BY MATTHEW CLARK THAT WAS THE FIRST ATLAS OF COASTAL CHARTS PRINTED IN THE U.S. THE BOSTON GAZETTE OF JULY 5, 1790 DESCRIBES THE PUBLICATION AS "JUST PUBLISHED". PHILLIPS INDICATES THAT PART OF THE CERTIFICATE OF THE ATLAS READS: "ALTHOUGH THESE CHARTS ARE SOLD SINGLY TO SOME, AND FOR THAT REASON A CERTIFICATE OF THE EXAMINATION IS ENGRAVEN ON EACH PLATE; YET AS THE WHOLE ARE BOUND TOGETHER IN THIS BOOK, AND HAVE PASSED THE SAME INSPECTION, IT IS PRESUMED, THAT THE SIGNING WILL BE SATISFACTORY WITHOUT PUTTING MY NAME TO EACH PARTICULAR CHART; - - - TEACHER OF MATHEMATICS IN BOSTON. N.B. THOSE SOLD IN SEPARATE SHEETS, WILL BE SIGNED AS ABOVE." A SPACE BEFORE "TEACHER OF MATHEMATICS" IS LEFT FOR THE NAME OF OSGOOD CARLETON, WHO TAUGHT MATHEMATICS AND NAVIGATION. APPARENTLY WHERE THE BLANK SPACE IS FILLED IN WITH OSGOOD CARLETON'S SIGNATURE, AS IS THE CASE WITH THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS AND YALE COPIES, THE MAPS WERE ISSUED SEPARATELY AND LATER GATHERED TOGETHER. THOSE UNSIGNED IN MANUSCRIPT WERE ISSUED IN THE ORIGINAL ATLAS. ORIGINAL SUBSCRIPTIONS WERE TAKEN AT THE INSURANCE OFFICES OF MR. BROOKS AND BY COL. COLMAN'S AT THE EASTERN COFFEE HOUSE. THE CHARTS AND ATLAS WERE SOLD BY ANDREW NEWELL, MATHEMATICAL INSTRUMENT MAKER ON STATE STREET, BY WILLIAM DEBLOIS, NO. 2 LONG-WHARF, BY MATTHEW CLARK AND BY OSGOOD CARLETON IN HIS SCHOOL NEAR OLIVER'S DOCK.

THIS CHART COVERS THE AREA FROM JUST SOUTH OF THE RAPPAHANNOCK RIVER TO ALBEMARLE SOUND, INCLUDING THE ENTRANCE TO THE CHESAPEAKE BAY. THE SHADING LINES AT THE EDGE OF THE WATER GIVE THE CHART A THREE DIMENSIONAL APPEARANCE SOMEWHAT LIKE THAT OF DES BARRES (SEE MAP # 280D5). NO DETAILED COMPARISON HAS YET BEEN MADE BY THE WRITER, BUT DESBARRES THE ATLANTIC NEPTUNE AND SURVEYS BY SAMUEL HOLLAND WERE PROBABLY THE MAIN SOURCES FOR THE CHART. SOME OF THE INITIAL CHARTS IN THIS PUBLICATION CARRY THE DATE 1789, ALTHOUGH THIS ONE DOES NOT. MANY SOUNDINGS ARE GIVEN IN THE CHESAPEAKE BAY. NEXT TO NORFOLK IS THE INSCRIPTION "BURNT JAN 1 1776."

THE YALE COPY OF THIS PARTICULAR CHART WAS NOT ATTACHED TO OTHERS IN THE PUBLICATION. THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS COPY IS ALSO ATTACHED TO SHEET 12 COVERING FROM ALBERMARLE [sic] SOUND TO CAPE LOOKOUT.

MCCORKLE INDICATES THAT "THE 18 CHARTS [IN THIS ATLAS] WERE PASTED TOGETHER IN PAIRS AND THE NINE SHEETS FOLDED AND BOUND INTO A SIMPLE NEAT BINDING IN A FORMAT SUITABLE FOR USE ON SMALL COASTAL VESSELS, THE MARKET FOR WHICH THEY WERE INTENDED." THE YALE AND LIBRARY OF CONGRESS COPIES FOLLOW THIS FORMAT. AS WORKING CHARTS, FEW SURVIVED THEIR USE AT SEA. ONLY EIGHT COPIES OF THE ATLAS ARE KNOWN TODAY.

DATA IS FROM WHEAT & BRUN, PHILLIPS ATLASES, MCCORKLE, AND FROM OBSERVATION OF THE YALE COPY.

EDITION & STATE INFO : THOSE COPIES SIGNED IN MANUSCRIPT BY OSGOOD CARLETON APPARENTLY WERE ISSUED AS SEPARATES ORIGINALLY (SEE DESCRIPTION) AND THOSE UNSIGNED IN MANUSCRIPT WERE ISSUED IN THE ORIGINAL ATLAS.

HFC OWNERSHIP DATA : THE HUNTINGFIELD COLLECTION HAS AN 8 X 10 GLOSSY PHOTOGRAPH OF THIS MAP FROM THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS AND AN 11 X 14 GLOSSY PHOTO FROM YALE UNIVERSITY. THE YALE PHOTO HAS A MDHR # OF MSA SC1399-520(REPRO).

BIBLIGRAPHICAL REFS. : WHEAT, JAMES CLEMENTS & CHRISTIAN F.BRUN, MAPS & CHARTS PUBLISHED IN AMERICA BEFORE 1800 A BIBLIOGRAPHY, LONDON: HOLLAND PRESS LIMITED, 1978, # 567; PHILLIPS, PHILIP LEE, A LIST OF GEOGRAPHICAL ATLASES IN THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, AMSTERDAM: THEATRVM ORBIS TERRARVM, LTD., 1971 REPRINT OF A 1909 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS PUBLICATION, # 3667, MAP # 11; RISTOW, WALTER W., AMERICAN MAPS AND MAPMAKERS COMMERCIAL CARTOGRAPHY IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY, DETROIT: WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY PRESS, 1985, 224; MCCORKLE, BARBARA B., AMERICA EMERGENT, NEW HAVEN: YALE UNIVERSITY, 1985, # 51 (FOR BACKGROUND ON THE ATLAS).

June 26, 1991


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