1857 U.S. Coast Survey Map or Chart of Boston Bay and Harbor, Massachusetts

A stunning 1857 U.S. Coast Survey nautical chart or maritime map of Boston Bay, Boston Harbor, and environs. The map covers the Massachusetts coastline from Cape Ann southward past Gloucester, Marblehead, Lynn, Boston and Cohasset to Green Harbor River. It offers astounding inland detail noting individual buildings, roads, communities, fields, and smaller waterways. In addition to inland details, this chart contains a wealth of practical information for the mariner including six land profile views, countless depth soundings, sailing instructions, tidal information, lighthouse locations, and notes on magnetic variance. This chart is noteworthy in that it is one of the few that A. D. Bache took a personal hand in surveying.

The triangulation for this chart was prepared by C. O. Boutelle and A. D. Bache. The topography was completed by H. L. Whiting, J. S. Williams, and S. A. Gilbert. The hydrography was accomplished by a team under the command of C. H. Davis. The entire production was supervised by A. D. Bache, Superintendent of the Survey of the Coast of the United States from 1843 to 1865.

Cartographer

The Office of the Coast Survey (1807 - present), founded in 1807 by President Thomas Jefferson and Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin, is the oldest scientific organization in the U.S. Federal Government. Jefferson created the "Survey of the Coast," as it was then called, to produce accurate navigational charts of the new nation's coasts and harbors. The first two superintendents defined the spirit of the Coast Survey. The Coast Survey's first superintendent was Swiss immigrant and West Point mathematics professor Ferdinand Hassler. Under Hassler's direction, from 1816 to 1843, the Coast Survey established its ideological and scientific foundations. These included the use of the most advanced techniques and most sophisticated equipment, along with unstinting attention to detail. Hassler devised a labor-intensive triangulation system that divided the entire coast into a series of enormous triangles. These were then subdivided into smaller triangulation units, which were individually surveyed. No one had ever attempted this exacting technique on such a massive scale. As a result, Hassler and the Coast Survey under his leadership earned a reputation for uncompromising dedication to accuracy and excellence. Unfortunately, despite being a masterful surveyor, Hassler was abrasive and politically unpopular, and Congress cut funding for the Coast Survey twice. Nonetheless, Hassler led the Coast Survey until his death in 1843, when Alexander Dallas Bache, Benjamin Franklin's great-grandson, took the helm. Bache was fully dedicated to the principles established by Hassler, but proved more politically astute and successfully lobbied Congress to fund the endeavor generously. Under A. D. Bache's leadership, the Coast Survey completed its most important work. During his long tenure with the Coast Survey, from 1843 to 1865, Bache steadfastly advocated American science and navigation and, in fact, founded the American Academy of Sciences. Benjamin Pierce succeeded Bache and ran the Survey from 1867 to 1874. Pierce was succeeded by Carlile Pollock Patterson, Superintendent from 1874 to 1881. In 1878, under Patterson's superintendence, the U.S. Coast Survey was reorganized as the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey (USCGS) to accommodate both topographic and nautical surveys. Today, the Coast Survey is part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as the National Geodetic Survey.   Further Details...

Source

Bache, A. D., Report of the Superintendent of the United States Coast Survey, (Washington) 1857.    

Condition

Very good condition. Some wear and toning on original fold lines. Backed with archival tissue for stability. Left margin extended.

References

Rumsey 2615.000. Guthorn, P. J. United States Coastal Charts 1783 - 1861, p. 37.