1815 Bouchette Masterplan of Lower Canada (Ontario) and Lake Champlain

This is Joseph Bouchette's monumental 10-sheet map of Lower Canada. Appearing at the end of the War of 1812, this is the largest, best, and most influential map of Canada issued in the 19th century. David Rumsey correctly praises it, saying that the 'graphic elegance of the large map is the equal (or perhaps the superior) of any of the contemporary maps that I have seen'. In its pre-publication manuscript form, it played a significant role in the Treaty of Ghent, which ended the War of 1812 and began the establishment of formal U.S.-Canada borders. Due to its extreme rarity, the significance of this map is often overlooked, and it is poorly represented in scholarly literature.

A Closer Look

The map is here presented on 10 sheets, each dissected and laid on linen in 6 sections. Oriented to the northwest to accommodate the orientation of the St. Lawrence River, coverage embraces from Lake St. Francis (just west of Montreal) and Lake Champlain east as far as Lake Témiscouata and Trois-Pistoles and south to include Lake Champlain as far as Crown Point, thus including large portions of northern New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. Remarkably, this map's detail is in no way diminished beyond its areas of focus in Lower Canada, incorporating considerable valuable content within the United States, particularly in the vicinity of Lake Champlain - a critical theater in the War of 1812.

The U.S.-Canada border is clear, running from St. Regis at the left-most edge of the map to the Connecticut River. Beyond this point, the political geography gets considerably more vague, with much of western Maine obscured by the title cartouche and insets. East of the insets, the primary map resumes, taking in parts of Northern Maine in the Eagle Lakes region, west of the important St. John's River. Although the 'Province of Maine' is noted, it extends well into what is today western New Brunswick. There are no defined borders with Maine, reflecting ambiguity related to the in-progress negotiations at Ghent ending the War of 1812 (1812 - 1815).

Three significant inset maps detail Quebec City, Montreal, and Trois-Rivières. The enormity of Bouchette's map means that, although insets, these city maps offer significant detail, clearly identifying individual buildings, streets, gardens, and more. In addition, there are 5 coastal profile views illustrating critical points along the St. Lawrence River.

We note an unambiguous distinction between the old French Seigneurial Grants - enormous Seigneuries are most evident along the St. Lawrence - and the smaller-scale and more rigid English plat system is apparent Eastern Townships, where we see meticulously surveyed townships of about ten miles square partitioned into ranges, themselves divided into rectangular lots of about 200 acres each.

Within the English system, there are four types of land use,

The small, dotted lines within the Townships shew the granted parts thereof. The lots which are shaded dark are reserved for the maintenance and support of the Protestant Clergy within the Province, and those of a lighter shade reserved for the future disposition of his Majesty.

The map is titled in an impressive, engraved cartouche in the lower right. The cartouche features illustrations of Canadian flora, Niagara Falls, and indigenous peoples set around the title and a panoramic view of Quebec City from across the St. Lawrence.

Historical Context

This map appeared at the end of the War of 1812. Although neither Great Britain nor the United States made significant gains, the true victors may have been Canadians, who emerged from the war with a renewed sense of national identity and solidarity. Part of this was pride in their vast resource-rich territory, which Bouchette believed was ready for exploitation.

In the preface of the volume associated with this map, Topographical Description of Lower Canada (not present), he describes his intent for this massive and detailed map,

The interior of Lower Canada being so little known beyond the limits of the Province, a belief that a detailed account of it would not only be useful in shewing its present state, but by bringing it under more general notice, might possibly assist in the development of its vast resources, has led to the construction of a topographical map upon a large scale…

Thus, writes historian Don Thomson (Men and Meridians),

In 1814 a committee of the legislature of Lower Canada recommended that he be granted £1,500 in aid of his proposed publication of a map-illustrated catalogue of information on the Province. That summer, supported by a £500 advance on the grant, Lieut.-Colonel Bouchette again proceeded to England.

When Bouchette arrived in Europe, the Ghent negotiations to end the War of 1812 were in progress. His cartographic expertise was harnessed by the British authorities, who made him a special surveyor under the Ghent Provisions Article 5 to work out, along with an American counterpart, a firm Canada-US border. While this map was not yet published, there can be no doubt that it, in its manuscript or proof form, was utilized in these negotiations, being by far the best cartographic representation of the U.S.-Canada borderlands obtainable and the work of one of the chief contracted surveyors.

The massive map was extensively praised in scientific circles. In April 1816, the Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce in London granted Bouchette a gold medal in honor of the achievement. Back in Canada, Bouchette received another mark of appreciation: a grant from seigneur Alexander Fraser of a quarter of the seigneuries of Madawaska and Lac Témiscouata.

In the end, despite the size, accuracy, and utility of Bouchette's map, the Canadian Legislature reneged on the promised funds. It was not until 1875 that Bouchette's heirs were compensated, though without the considerable interest accrued on the long overdue payment.

Publication History and Census

This map was drafted by Joseph Bouchette based on survey work completed during and before the War of 1812 (1812 - 1815). It was engraved in London by John Waker and published by William Faden. The map was intended to illustrate Bouchette's Topographical Description of Lower Canada, the atlas for which includes this 10-sheet map, a 2-sheet map of Upper and Lower Canada, and a single-sheet map of Gaspe. This present example is a separate issue, dissected and laid on linen.

For such an excellent and important map, it is impressively rare. The OCLC records examples at the Redwood Library and Athenaeum, the University of Michigan Clements Library, the American Antiquarian Society, Boston Athenaeum, and the Bibliothèque et Archives Nationales du Québec. We note additional examples in Library and Archives Canada, the Library of Congress, and the David Rumsey Collection. Most other examples, both online and in OCLC, are digital resources copied from the David Rumsey example.