An engraved map, with hand colored wash Size: 14.1 inches X 11.4 inches; Scale: 1 inch = approximately 25 miles. Map Type: Atlas This is a superior copy. T.G. Bradford served as an assistant editor of the America Encyclopedia before entering the field of atlas publishing with his first work published in 1835. G.W. Boynton, the engraver of this map, operated an engraving shop in Boston between 1830 and 1845. With the financial success of his 1835 A Comprehensive Atlas…, Bradford was able to update his maps, enlarge them and add a descriptive text to each. For map hungry Americans, these were attractive features to those interested in migrating during the burgeoning western expansion of the United States.
This map is from the 1st edition of An Illustrated Atlas… considered by most to be Bradford's best atlas, far superior to the smaller and more crudely drawn 1835 Comprehensive Atlas. This early map of New York displays the location of each county courthouse, along with the roads, rivers, creeks, lakes, and other topographical features.
Several early railroads can be observed on the map, including the Brooklyn and Jamaica Railroad, which built a ten-mile stretch of track between Brooklyn and Jamaica in 1832. The Long Island Rail Road was founded in 1834, leasing the track laid down by the Brooklyn & Jamaica and building its own railroad pictured in this map to Smithtown near Islip on Long Island.
Taken from An Illustrated Atlas, Geographical, Statistical, And Historical, Of The United States And The Adjacent Countries.
References: A List of Geographical Atlases in the Library of Congress, 1381, Phillips, P.L, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1909; Rumsey List No. 0089; American Maps and Mapmakers, p270-271, Ristow, George, Wayne State University Press, Detroit, 1985