Oregon, Upper California & New Mexico. / Mitchell, Samuel Augustus; Tanner, Henry S.; Bourquin, Frederick / 1848

Oregon, Upper California & New Mexico. Mitchell, Samuel Augustus; Tanner, Henry S.; Bourquin, Frederick, 1848

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Full Title: Oregon, Upper California & New Mexico. Published by S. Augustus Mitchell, N.E. corner of Market & 7th Sts. Philadelphia. 1849 (i.e., late 1848?). Entered according to Act of Congress in the year 1845 by H.N. Burroughs in the ... District Court of the eastern district of Penna.

Author: Mitchell, Samuel Augustus; Tanner, Henry S.; Bourquin, Frederick

Date: 1848

Note: Revision of Mitchell's 1846-1847 maps with title: Oregon and Upper California. Coverage is extended eastward to include New Mexico and part of Missouri Territory. Mexican boundary added. Relief shown by hachures and spot heights. Uncolored. "Oregon" and "Upper or New California" in bold type. Shows Indian tribes and includes descriptive notes. New California extends to the Gulf of California. Prime meridians: Greenwich and Washington.

Published In: A new universal atlas containing maps of the various empires, kingdoms, states and republics of the World. With a special map of each of the United States, plans of cities &c. Comprehended in seventy sheets and forming a series of one hundred and seventeen maps, plans and sections ... Philadelphia, Published by S. Augustus Mitchell, N.E. corner of Market & 7th Streets. Entered ... 1844, by Carey & Hart ... Pennsylvania. (title page by) J. Knight Sc. Barralet del. Humphreys sc. (1848)

Publication Author: Mitchell, Samuel Augustus; Tanner, Henry S.; Bourquin, Frederick.

Publication Reference: Ristow, W. W. American maps and mapmakers, p. 311 (award actually received in 1848)

Publication Note: This is a unique copy of the Mitchell/Tanner Universal Atlas. Frederick Bourquin and his employer, Peter Duval, received a Third Premium Award from the Franklin Institute in November, 1848, for their achievement in transferring the Universal Atlas from copper plates to lithographic stones. The catalog of the exhibition lists it as "No. 52. Universal Atlas in folio, a most beautiful specimen of the art of transferring and lithographic printing, from the press of P.S. Duval, Philadelphia, transferred by Bourquin." This copy of the atlas was their submission to the Franklin Institute to be considered for the award. It is made up of sheets from the atlas, all uncolored, all oversized, and all taken from various editions of the atlas from 1846 to 1848 (one map is dated 1849, but we believe it was issued in late 1848). It appears that these sheets were offprints that remained in the lithographer's shop and that the atlas was made up from them. Atlas is bound in half leather marbled paper covered boards with leather label on the front reading "Atlas Transferred From Copper To And Printed From Stone By Frederick Bourquin." The atlas stayed with the Franklin Institute, each page having the Institute's stamp on it, and was eventually sold by the Institute in the mid twentieth century. There are several erasures of dates that are earlier than 1848 (perhaps an attempt to make the book seem up to date) and several erasures of Tanner's name (on the title page) to conform to the fact that in 1848 this was known as Mitchell's atlas. The map borders vary between the "Mitchell" and the "Tanner" borders. And the paper thickness and quality varies as well. These sheets may have been some of the first "pulls" of each map in the various 1846-48 editions. This is a fascinating compilation and throws light on the transition in printing from copper plate to lithographic stone. No table of contents.

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