Bickerstaff's Books, Maps &c. -- Massachusetts Maps

[Boston.] Bellin. Plan de la Ville de Boston et ses Environs. ca. 1757. From Prevost's Histoire Generale des Voyages... (Paris.) 6 5/8 x 10 5/8." Very good.
A finely engraved map of Boston (when it was Boston Neck) and the immediately surrounding area. A key to the right of the map identifies 16 buildings, among them the town hall and several military installations. This map is very similar to, but appeared several years before, Bellin's map of Boston from his Petit Atlas Maritime. Not in Boston Engineering Department, List of Maps of Boston Published Subsequent to 1600. [Item no. 2412] Click here for image. $450.00.

[Boston.] after Bellin. Grundriss von der Stadt Boston und ihren Gegenden. ca. 1758. From Allgemeine Historie der Reisen zu Wasser und Lande. (Leipzig.) 6 7/8 x 9 3/4." Crisp, clean example with a couple of very minor spots. Modern color.
A very uncommon German version of Bellin's classic map of Boston neck and the surrounding area. A 16-item key to the left of the map identifies churches, cannon batteries, City Hall and other points of interest. Boston Engineering Department, List of Maps of Boston Published Subsequent to 1600 (1904 edition): p. 20. [Item no. 2388.] Click here for image. $500.00.

[Boston.] Il Gazzettiere Americano. Carta Rappresentante il Porto di Boston. From Il Gazzettiere Americano by M. Coltellini. Livorno. 1763. 8 1/4 x 7." Traces of removed mounting tape on reverse. Very good.

An attractive and uncommon Italian map of the Boston harbor area from 1763. In addition to identifying many of the coastal towns surrounding Boston, the map names many of the harbor islands. Dozens of soundings are provided and the main ship channel is shown as well. The scrollwork title and depiction of landscape elements on the land areas add considerable visual appeal to this map. Phillips, A List of Maps of America: p. 147. Not in Boston Engineering Department, List of Maps of Boston Published Subsequent to 1600. [Item # 2266.] $575.00.

[Boston Area.] [Battles of Lexington and Concord.] Gentleman's Magazine. The Gentleman's Magazine for June, 1775, including "A Map of 100 Miles round Boston." 1775. Printed for D. Henry, at St. John's Gate. London. 48 pp. Magazine is disbound with occasional very light spotting. Map is folded as issued and has some very light offsetting. There is also a tear of about 1" from the binding edge that extends about 1/2" into the image area.
This magazine contains a report of more a page describing the battles of Lexington and Concord from the British perspective. Several more pages are devoted to the increasingly restive state of the American colonies. Among the reports: "Gen. Gage has given positive orders that no person shall go out of Boston." "All the colleges in New England, having been voluntarily resigned by the students, are turned into barracks for the Provincial troops." "Ticonderoga has been taken by Col. Easton, at the head of the provincials, without the loss of a man on either side." A highlight of the magazine is the map designed to show the greater Boston area, where the battles took place. The map, measuring 9 1/4 x 9 5/8 ," is still bound into the magazine. The map is bounded by Massachusetts Bay to the east and the Connecticut River to the west. It also portrays part of southern New Hampshire and very northern Connecticut and Rhode Island. Having both the battle account and the map together as originally presented enhances the historical value of the magazine. Jolly, Maps of America in Periodicals before 1800: 258. Sellers & Van Ee, Maps and Charts of North America and the West Indies, 1750-1789: 891. [Item no. 2236.] SOLD.

[Boston.] Gentleman's Magazine. A New and Correct Plan of the Town of Boston. 1775. From Gentleman's Magazine, October, 1775 issue. (London.) 10 1/4 x 7 1/2." Professionally cleaned and remargined. Light offsetting from adjoining text page affects the title. Later hand color.
A nicely detailed map of Boston in its original Shawmut Peninsula configuration. Most streets and lanes are named, as are the Mill Pond, the Common, the Magazine and several wharves. A fortification is noted at Boston Neck. And, reflecting the Bunker Hill engagement, "Charles Town in Ruins" is indicated by drawings of several damaged buildings. Jolly, Maps of America in Periodicals before 1800: 260. [Item No. 2165.] Click here for image. SOLD.

[Plymouth Area.] Des Barres. [Plymouth Bay, Massachusetts.] ca. 1777. J.F.W. Des Barres. (London.) Sheet size: 28 1/2 x 22." Image size: 25 3/4 x 19." Hand color consistent with original treatment. Professionally restored with triangular section of upper left corner recreated (4" along left edge, 6 1/2" along top edge). Tears at centerfold also repaired. A nicely preserved example of a scarce chart.
Des Barres' Atlantic Neptune was one of the great achievements of 18th century cartography. This chart of Plymouth Bay provides much detail of the area, including dwellings and lots, as well as roads and coastal features (beaches, points, islands). A limited number of soundings are provided. Among the features identified are Plymouth, Duxborough (i.e., Duxbury) Meet, Jones's River, Martins Bay, Eagles Nest Harbour, Powder Point, Rouses Hummock, Gurnet Point (and Light House), Long Beach, "Sandy Shoals called Browns Islands," Clarks or Watsons Island, Horse Race and Cow Pasture. The chart bears the JB/JBATES watermark and does not have a date imprint or chart number; thus it is the second state noted by Stevens. (The second state differs from the first only in the paper used; there were no observed changes to the plate.) An outstanding early chart of Plymouth Bay. Stevens, Catalogue of the Atlantic Neptune: 93. Sellers & Van Ee, Maps and Charts of North America and the West Indies, 1750-1789: 960. [Item no. 2472.] SOLD.

[Massachusetts.] Universal Magazine. A New and accurate Map of the Colony of Massachusets Bay, in North America from a Late Survey. 1780. From the December, 1780 issue of The Universal Magazine. (London.) 10 3/8 x 12 3/4." Old fold lines. Tape repair to split in upper margin. Binding edge tear of 1/2" across neat line. Minor spot. Very crisp, clean image.
A nicely detailed map of Massachusetts and Rhode Island as portrayed in the midst of the American Revolution. Martha's Vineyard and Nantuket I. (sic) are included. Considerable detail of towns, rivers and even a few roads is provided. Jolly, Maps of America in Periodicals before 1800: 355. Sellers & Van Ee, Maps and Charts of North America and the West Indies, 1750-1789: 881. [Item no. 2475.] $500.00.

[Boston.] Norman. Plan of the Town of Boston, with the Attack on Bunkers Hill in the Peninsula of Charlestown, the 17th June 1775. ca. 1781. From An Impartial History of the War in America, between Great Britain and the United States... Boston. 11 5/8 x 6 1/4." Ragged edges; trimmed to neat line along top portion at right. Scattered foxing, at times fairly heavy. A good, strong impression. Click here for image.
An extremely scarce Boston-printed map of Revolutionary War Boston, including details of the battle of Bunker Hill. The map appeared in the Boston printing of James Murray's history of the American Revolution. The history was first published in London in 1780 and then reprinted in Boston -- in three parts -- between 1781 and 1784. The map depicts the position of the American and English forces, illustrates (British) ships firing on Charlestown and shows "Chalestown in Flames." The map is a close reengraving of the map that appeared in the London edition of Murray's history, which itself was based on a Sayer and Bennet map from 1775. This appears to be the first map of the Bunker Hill battle to have been printed in Boston. In addition to the Bunker Hill details, the map has a table at the lower right that provides a chronology of major fires in Boston, the town wards and a key to eleven prominent buildings. John Norman, the engraver of the map, was an Englishman who began his career as an engraver and publisher in Philadelphia in about 1774. He moved to Boston around 1781 and died there in 1817. During his Boston years, Norman was a partner (and the engraver for) the Boston Magazine, a periodical that achieved limited success during its run from October 1783 through December, 1786. Norman also partnered with Osgood Carleton in 1798 to publish the first official maps of Massachusetts and Maine, a project that was fraught with difficulties. Norman's skill as an engraver did not receive high marks, although Stauffer notes "[s]ome few of his later plates show decided improvement." (Stauffer, American Engravers Upon Copper and Steel: Volume 1, p. 193.) Wheat & Brun, Maps and Charts Published in America before 1800: 241. Nebenzahl, A Bibliography of Printed Battle Plans of the American Revolution 1775-1795: 32. Boston Engineering Department, List of Maps of Boston Published Subsequent to 1600 (1904 edition): p. 27. Stauffer, American Engravers Upon Copper and Steel: 2360. [Item no. 2467.] SOLD.

[Massachusetts/New Hampshire/Maine.] Des Barres. [Chart of the Coast from Newbury to Cape Elizabeth.] Published according to Act, April 29, 1776 by I.F.W. Des Barres, Esqr. London. 1776/1781. Image size: 29 1/2 x 41 1/2." Overall size: 32 1/2 x 44." Moderate stain along center fold where the two sheets were joined. Other light to moderate staining, primarily confined to the margins. Several old tears have been repaired, including one of about 12" extending from the left edge and two of about 8" in and near the top margin.

This double-sheet chart from Des Barres monumental Atlantic Neptune covers the New England coast from Newbury, Massachusetts to Cape Elizabeth, Maine. Stevens notes that this fourth state of the chart, while bearing the 1776 date, was probably issued around 1781. Among the details added to this final state of the chart are the addition of "Isles of Sholes" and the naming of six individual islands in that group. The chart has limited color, including greens for hachure-defined hills, light blue for rivers and ponds, and light red for the commercial centers of Newbury, Massachusetts and Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Among the places named are Richmond Id., Black Point Bay, Stage Harb., Ogunkell (for Ogunquit) River, Cape Neddock Nubble, Garish's Point, Audience Pt., Little Boars Island and Salisbury Point. A fairly extensive road network is depicted, as are individual dwellings. The chart bears the "JB" watermark. This is a wonderful example of a classic chart of the New England coast produced during the American Revolution. Stevens 102, 4th state. Sellers & Van Ee: 817, 3rd state. [Item # 2280.] $3,500.00.

[Boston and other ports.] Millar. Various Plans and Draughts of Cities, Towns, Harbours &c. drawn from the latest Authorities. From Millar's New Complete & Universal System of Geography. (London.) ca. 1790. 12 x 8 1/2." Attractive later hand color. Very minor foxing. Matted and shrink wrapped. Not examined prior to shrink wrapping.

A wonderfully decorative assemblage on one sheet of five small maps of the principal North American cities of the late 18th century. The five maps portray New York Harbour; the Town and Harbour of Boston; the River Delaware from Chester to Philadelphia; the Harbour of Charles Town, South Carolina; and the City and Harbour of Havanna. The "Penny Ferry" is noted just north of Boston. [Item # 2243.] SOLD.

[Massachusetts/Connecticut.] [Geology.] Doolittle. A Geological Map of the Connecticut [River]. 1822. 1822. No place. 22 1/8 x 7 5/8." Folded as issued. Light, uniform age toning. Extensive original hand color. Overall, very good.
A very early geological map of the Connecticut River drainage from Bellows Falls in the north to New Haven in the south. The predominant geological composition of the Connecticut River Valley is indicated through use of 15 keyed colors. The map probably appeared in a scientific journal in the early 1820s. Amos Doolittle, who produced this map, was an important New England mapmaker and engraver during the forty years after the American Revolution. A very unusual and scarce map. [Item no. 2230.] SOLD.

[New England/Atlantic Canada.] Depot de la Marine. Carte de la Cote Orientale de L'Amerique Septentrionale Partie Comprise Entre la Baie de Gaspee et New York...en 1834. 1834. Depot de la Marine. (Paris.) 23 1/2 x 34 1/2." Rolled chart, never folded. Crisp impression on heavy stock. Very clean with no foxing. A beautiful example.
Based on an 1828 chart by Edmund Blunt, this chart provides good coastal detail from the southwestern tip of Newfoundland to the northernmost coast of New Jersey. A nice inset of Boston Harbor and its islands (approximately 8 x 10") is based on previous charts by A.S. Wadsworth and J.F.W. Des Barres. A very attractive chart in superb condition. [Item no. 2223.] $575.00

[Provincetown/Truro.] U.S. Government/Graham. A Map of the Extremity of Cape Cod including the Townships of Provincetown & Truro: With a Chart of Their Sea Coast and of Cape Cod Harbour, State of Massachusetts. Executed under the direction of Major J. D. Graham U.S. Top. Engs...1833, '34 & '35. 1836. U.S. Government, to accompany House Document 121, 25th Congress, 2d Session. (Washington, D.C.) Four sheets, each with overall dimensions of 29 1/4 x 36 1/4." When joined, approximately 58 x 72." An excellent impression printed on heavy stock. Several tears (including one of about 8") have been expertly mended. A very good example.
A very large, desirable chart of the tip of Cape Cod with an emphasis on Provincetown. With a scale of six inches to the mile, much detail is provided. Eleven wharves, all named, are shown along the Provincetown waterfront. Individual structures in the town are depicted, including several churches, lighthouses and windmills. Among the geographic features named are Herring Cove, Long Point, Race Point, Junky's Harbor and several ponds (including Bawdy Pond). A number of salt works "for making salt by evaporating sea water" appear in the town. Extending across the entire top of the chart -- and emphasizing its date -- are registers of the tides at high and low water for the months of October, 1833 and June, 1835. An impressive chart of the outer Cape. [Item no. 2215.] SOLD.

[Massachusetts/Connecticut/Rhode Isalnd.] Brown & Parsons. Map of Massachusetts Connecticut and Rhode Island from the latest Authorities...1838. 1838. Published by Brown & Parsons. Hartford. Map dimensions are 15 x 20." Folds into a case of 5 1/4 x 3 1/4." This attractively colored map folds into a green leather folder. Folder, embossed with "Massachusetts Connecticut & Rhode Island," is scuffed and worn. Map has four quarter-sized spots, perhaps old ink. There are two fold separations of about 1" each, one of which has been mended with archival tape.
In addition to the three states, this uncommon map encompasses eastern New York state including Long Island. The counties of Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island are colored. Scarce. [Item No. 2095.] $400.00.

[Boston Public Garden.] Lincoln. Plan of Public Garden Showing proposed arrangement of Lots thereon. ca. 1850. J.H. Bufford & Co., Lith. Boston. Sheet size: 29 3/8 x 44." Formerly folded, now professionally restored and laid down on linen. Light browning at old folds; closed tears; area of glue remnant in extreme lower right corner, confined almost entirely to the blank margin.
An unusual and rarely seen map of what is now the Boston Public Garden laid out as house lots. In its journey from tidal flat and urban refuse site to much-loved public park, the land next to the Boston Common survived two attempts to turn it into housing subdivisions. Fortunately, both attempts -- the first in the 1820s and the one depicted here in 1850 -- failed. This map portrays the Public Garden bounded by Boylston Street, the Common, Beacon Street and a marshy area where Arlington Street is today. Hundreds of house lots, each about 25 x 100 feet", are laid out. An interesting, historic and visually attractive portrayal of what might have been. Krieger and Cobb: Mapping Boston: p. 198 (illustrated). Not in Boston Engineering Department, List of Maps of Boston Published Subsequent to 1600. [Item no. 2469.] $600.00.

[Boston and Massachusetts.] [Railroad.] Chesbrough. Skeleton Map of Rail-Roads between Cape Canso and St.Louis...Celebrating the opening of Railway communication between the waters of the Atlantic at Boston, the Canadas and the Great West. September 17th, 1851... Tappan & Bradford's Lith. Boston (assumed). 1851. Image area: 23 1/2 31 1/4." Folded as issued, with no fold browning and no separations at fold intersections. A remarkably fresh example, with a few very minor spots. The back (colored paper) cover of the report in which the map appeared is still adhered to the verso of the map.

The upper portion of the sheet is a map covering the area from Atlantic Canada west to Wisconsin and Illinois, depicting railroads in operation, under construction or proposed. Two smaller maps at the bottom of the sheet are entitled "Map of Railroads in Massachusetts" and "Boston Harbor & Rail Road Termini." The Mill Dam appears in the latter map and two railroads cross over what is now Back Bay. A wealth of information from the early days of American railroading. The 28-page pamphlet in which the map appeared is included. Modelski, Railroad Maps of the United States: 79. Not in Boston Engineering Department, List of Maps of Boston Published Subsequent to 1600, perhaps because the primary map is not Boston-related. [Item # 2282.] $375.00.

[Boston View.] Mallory. [Panoramic View of Boston] 1852. Engraved for Drake's History of Boston, 1852. (Boston.) 8 1/2 x 23 5/8." Light age toning; chipping of margins, extra folds, minor spotting.

[Gloucester.] Blunt. Cape Ann Harbour Surveyed by the Rev. C. Felch & W. T. Mallone, Esq... 1854. From Blunt's American Coast Pilot. New York. 9 x 7 5/8." Foxing and light dampstaining, confined to the margins.
An attractive chart of Gloucester harbor, with the street layout of Glocester (sic) indicated. This chart is from the 17th edition of Blunt's American Coast Pilot. Among the features identified are Norman's Woe Rock, Stage Point, Ten Pound Island, Five Pound Island and Black Bess. [Item No. 2167.] $100.00.