1964 Dudley Chase Pictorial Map of Massachusetts for the 1964 World's Fair

One of Ernest Dudley Chase's less common pictorial map, this map of Massachusetts created for the Massachusetts Pavilion at the 1964 New York World's Fair. The map depicts the state from New York to the Atlantic Ocean and from Vermont and New Hampshire to Connecticut. Charmingly illustrated with eye-catching color, the map highlights the many sightseeing opportunities available to people visiting the Bay State. Historic buildings throughout the state are illustrated in profile and in the vignettes that frame the map, while historic ships, such as the Mayflower and Old Ironsides, ply the waters off the Massachusetts coast. Myriad cities and towns are labeled, including Boston and Plymouth. An inset map along the bottom border illustrates the many different routes one could take from the World's Fair to visit Massachusetts, highlighting Boston, Plymouth, and the New Bedford Whaling Museum, which had lent a 175-foot section of the famous 1,295-foot-long Whaling Panorama for the restaurant of the New England Pavilion. As stated above, numerous vignettes highlight different aspects of life in Massachusetts. Outdoor activities, such as fishing, golfing, horseback riding, and boating, are depicted, as are historic sites from around the state, including Springfield Armory, Faneuil Hall in Boston, and the Bunker Hill Monument in Charlestown.

Massachusetts and the 1964 World's Fair

At the 1964 World's Fair, the six New England states – Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut - took part in the fair collaborated on a pavilion. Each state had their own exhibition space, known as 'the Court of States'. The pavilion also featured a 'village green' where groups from different New England communities held dances, musical performances, and fashion shows of New England-made apparel. New England-made products were sold to fairgoers at the Country Store, and a restaurant served typical regional dishes.

This map was created by Ernest Dudley Chase for distribution at the Massachusetts pavilion during the 1964 New York World's Fair. There are at least two known editions of this map. The first edition includes an inset map of the greater Boston area. This special edition for the New York World's Fair is scarce, as we have been able to locate only one other known example in the collection of the Norman B. Leventhal Map Center at the Boston Public Library.