1834 Blachford Nautical Chart or Map of St. George's Channel

This is a scarce and early 1834 Robert Blachford blueback nautical chart or maritime map of St. George's Channel and the entire coast of Ireland.

A Closer Look

Highly detailed, myriad depth soundings are indicated throughout, particularly along the coastlines. Rhumb lines crisscross the map, aiding mariners in navigating the region. Innumerable coastal locations are also labeled, along with several cities, including Belfast, Donegal, Galway, Limerick, Cork, and Dublin in Ireland and Liverpool, Lancaster, Glasgow, Swansea, Cardiff, and Bristol in England, Scotland, and Wales. Numerous inset maps provide more detailed depictions of areas throughout the region, including Dublin Bay, Holyhead, Warterford Harbor, Cork Harbor, Liverpool Bay, and the Frith of Clyde. Views of islands, lighthouses, and coastlines are also included. Yellow manuscript notations mark lighthouses and other coastal lights and a table situated in western Ireland gives the exact position of these lights.

Blueback Charts

Blueback nautical charts began appearing in London in the late 18th century. Bluebacks, as they came to be called, were privately published large format nautical charts known for their distinctive blue paper backing. The backing, a commonly available blue manila paper traditionally used by publishers to wrap unbound pamphlets, was adopted as a practical way to reinforce the low-quality paper used by private chart publishers trying to cut costs. The earliest known blueback charts include a 1760 chart issued by Mount and Page, and a 1787 chart issued by Robert Sayer. The tradition took off in the early 19th century, when British publishers like John Hamilton Moore, Robert Blachford, James Imray, William Heather, John William Norie, Charles Wilson, David Steel, R. H. Laurie, and John Hobbs, among others, rose to dominate the chart trade. Bluebacks became so popular that the convention was embraced by chartmakers outside of England, including Americans Edmund March Blunt and George Eldridge, as well as Scandinavian, French, German, Russian, and Spanish chartmakers. Blueback charts remained popular until the late 19th century, when government subsidized organizations like the British Admiralty Hydrographic Office and the United States Coast Survey, began issuing their own superior charts on high quality paper that did not require reinforcement.

Publication History and Census

This map was created and published by Robert Blachford and published in 1834. This is the only known cataloged example.