1905 Walker Trolley Map and View of New England Centered on Boston

George Hiram Walker (January 4, 1852 - November 14, 1927) was a Boston based publisher of books, views, and maps active in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born in Springfield, Vermont, Walker started his life as a dry goods merchant but developed an active interest in publishing during the early 1870s. Walker began publishing in 1878 when he partnered with an unknown New York Firm. Two years later, Walker brought the operation in house by partnering with his brother, Oscar W. Walker, in the opening of a lithography studio at 81 Milk Street, Boston. Shortly thereafter the firm expanded to new offices at 160 Tremont Street, Boston. The Walker brothers produced a large corpus of works, most of which focused on travel and tourism in New England. Walker also established the Walker-Gordon Milk Laboratory with Dr. Thomas Morgan Rotch and Gustave Gordon. This interesting investment was based on the premise that infant deaths could be avoided by providing higher quality milk. The company eventually became a great success, producing a high-quality cow milk that closely resembled human breast milk. In the process the Walker-Gordon laboratory developed many of the dairy health standards that are still with us today. Walker married Irene L. Loud on March 25, 1885. More by this mapmaker...

New England Street Railway Club (July, 1900 - c. 1925) was a technical and engineering organization based in Boston during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The organization was founded by Robert H. Derrah (1865 - 1920) in July of 1900. Derrah subsequently worked as the club's secretary and published its bulletin. The club was a popular and politically potent organization at a time when rail and trolley transit was common throughout New England. They held annual dinners that attracted high society from throughout the region. President Taft is recorded as speaking at one such gathering. The society issued numerous tourist oriented publications related to rail travel in New England. Learn More...

John Jenness Lane (July 5, 1860 - July 13, 1913) was a New England newspaperman, printer, editor, and publisher active in the late 19th and early 20th century. Lane was born in Candia, New Hampshire. At just 18, in 1878, Lane founded the Candia Banner, a daily servicing Candia, New Hampshire. The small newspaper was remained active until 1882. In 1880, he took over management of the Suncook, New Hampshire local. He worked for a time as an editor in Manchester New Hampshire, eventually establishing the Laconia Advocate. He also worked as a correspondent for the Boston Globe in northern New Hampshire. In 1896 he relocated to Boston to take on an editorial position at the Associated Press. Lane was an active promoter of New England Street Railroads, or Trolleys, and served as secretary of the New England Street Railway Club from 1904, when he leveraged his editorial credentials to publish an exceptional Trolley Wayfinder Map of New England. He joined the masonic order in 1904 and was active in political life, beling elected to the Board of Selectman, the Everett Common Council, and the School Board. Lane's son, Harry, died of illness in 1910, leading to a period of deep depression and physical decline that ended in his death in 1913. Learn More...