A Checklist of Pennsylvania Maps

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A Checklist of Pennsylvania Maps to 1800

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The creation of comprehensive cartobibliographies of printed maps such as The Mapping of North America by Philip Burden, New England in Early Printed Maps 1513 to 1800 by Barbara McCorkle, the MapForum listings, and the many map history books published (see References), have made it possible to attempt this Checklist of Pennsylvania Maps to 1800.

Manuscript maps, identified as such, are also included, but no claim to inclusiveness can be made for them. A fair number lie buried in archives or are described only in scattered (and sometimes obscure) publications. Hulbert (1907) published a five volume collection of photographs of manuscript maps of America held in the Crown Collection of the British Library, and collections of French & Indian War (Brown, Schwartz 1994, Stotz) and Revolutionary War (Marshall & Peckham, Guthorn) manuscript maps have appeared. Some of the more well known ones are reproduced in Schwartz & Ehrenberg, Fite & Freeman, and other map histories and articles. Also, manuscript maps of Pennsylvania are listed by Docktor. However, no record is ever made of most manuscript maps, they are ephemora, and undated ones present the additional problem of dating. For example, it is common to prepare a small map whenever a survey of land is done, and thousands of these from the late 17th century on exist in land records. With a few exceptions, manuscript land survey maps are not included in the Checklist. A description of available Pennsylvania Archives land records is given by Munger, and is online at PA State Archives - RG-17. Old land records including maps are also held at county courthouses. The Archives also has a large number of road and turnpike maps described at PA State Archives - RG-12. About fifty are manuscript maps dating prior to 18oo. However, as they are well described (see description in Record Group 12.9) in the archives website, they are not included in the checklist.

Burden describes over 750 printed maps of North America up to 1700, of which less than 100 fit the description of a map of Pennsylvania as adopted here. That is, they show the eastern United States (and southern Canada) at most, and include the Pennsylvania region. This definition is arbitrary as a large world map can have more detail than a crude local one, but it limits the maps considered to regional ones of the state. Maps of North America and continental maps of the United States are excluded. Maps of the eastern United States that include Mexico or the Caribbean islands are also excluded. An exception is made for maps where Pennsylvania is in the title and these few are included. Burden and McCorkle are used as the primary published references. For 18th century maps, the definition of a Pennsylvania map used here corresponds to that adopted by McCorkle for New England maps, thus printed maps of the eastern United States up to 1800 appear there. For the period 1750-1789 Sellers & van Ee is a major reference and many of the maps listed can be seen in greater detail at Library of Congress - Maps. For manuscript maps and maps specific to Pennsylvania, the references vary depending upon where the map was found.

Since the number of maps after 1750 is considerable, reissues of earlier maps are not usually listed after this date. Also, maps of Canada, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland published after 1750 may contain parts of Pennsylvania though they are not listed here. Also, because of the large number of maps after 1750, a decade is split into two pages.

The maps are arranged chronologically by century and decade. A catalog number is given for every map up to 1800 consisting of two parts, a date and index number. For example, 1700.2 would refer to a map dated 1700 and listed second. The order of listing is not meaningful.

If interested browsers note a missing map, an email (email@mapsofpa.com) would be appreciated.