Morris, William Ellis
William Ellis Morris (January 29, 1812 - October 15, 1875) was a Pennsylvania based civil engineer and railroad executive active in the mid-19th century. Little is known of Morris' education, but earlier in his career as a civil engineer he was employed to plan the Portage Railroad link over the Pennsylvania's Allegheny Mountains. The curious project of the Portage Railroad involved a scheme to use a locomotive to hall barges up one side of the mountain range so that they could drift down the opposite side. He later ran the Germantown-Norristown Railroad Company and subsequently the New York's Long Island Railroad - which from a point of near bankruptcy he developed into a world class transportation network. His cartographic work seems limited to his revision of Melish's map of Pennsylvania in1848.
Transformed by Coal and the Industrial Revolution.
Map Of Pennsylvania, constructed from the County Surveys authorized by the State; and other original Documents.
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A striking 1848 first edition example of William Ellis Morris' map of Pennsylvania. It reflects the dramatic transformation of Pennsylvania in the early 18th century when it became the hub of American coal production - the fuel for the Industrial Revolution in the United States. Although based on the 1822 Melish, this is a fully new production surpassing all previous maps of the state. (more details)