1886 U.S. Coast Survey Chart or Map of the Savannah River, Georgia

This is a rarely seen nautical chart of Savanna Georgia, the Savanna River, and environs. Depicts from Savannah eastward to Hilton Head Island and southward as far as the entrance to the Vernon River. Shows Wassaw Sound, Skiddaway Island, Wassaw Island, Wilmington Island, Tybee Island, Turtle Island and Jones Islands. Offers superb detail both inland and offshore. Has a detailed city plan of the city of Savannah showing the grid structure, outlying buildings, and surrounding farmlands. Offshore, this chart offers countless depth soundings throughout as well as showing shoals and depth zones through shading. Notes on Tides, Soundings, and weather in the upper left quadrant. Notes on lighthouses in the lower right quadrant. Title area in the upper right quadrant. Based upon a similar though less detailed chart of this region first issued by the Coast Survey in 1867. Prepared under the supervision of F. M. Thorn, Superintendent of the U.S. Coast Survey in 1886.

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

Thorn, F. M., Report of the Navy Yard Site Comission, Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic Coasts, Appendix H., 1886.    

Condition

Very good condition. Minor verso reinforcement and toning on some of the original fold lines.