Kinglsey A. Taft Map Room Collection

Le Canada, ou Nouvelle France
Created by N. Sanson/A. DeWinter, published in Amsterdam circa 1690.

Sanson created the first map to show all five Great Lakes, but Lac Superieur (Lake Superior) and Lac des Puans (Lake Michigan) are shown with no western edges.

A Map of the British and French Settlements in North America, exhibiting the just Boundaries & the French Encroachments
Created by Thomas Bowen in 1755 and published between 1759 and 1764.

This very detailed map expressed England’s view of its claims in North America leading up to the French and Indian War. It features two parts showing the northern and southern halves of North America east of the Great Plains, except for most of Florida and northern
Canada.

Canada—Louisiane et Terres Angloises
Created by d'Anville, November 1755.

This map is actually four sheets fitted together to show North America east of the Mississippi River. Because the measuring of longitude was still uncertain at that time, the longitude of la Belle Riviere (the Ohio River) is portrayed about 60 miles west of its proper position relative to Lake Erie. The lower right sheet provides a more detailed map of the Le Fleuve Saint-Laurent (St. Lawrence River). Pale red coloring denotes the area east of the Mississippi River, while pale green coloring denotes the area to the west.

Carte de la Partie de l'Amerique Septentrionale qui comprend les Possessions Anglaises
Author unknown, undated.

This map details eastern Canada, which includes the northern Etats Unis (United States); however, the states are not demarcated individually. Pittsburgh is represented as “Ft. Pitt,” what is now southern Ohio is described as “Virginie” and the occupants of the region are identified as “Indiens de l’Ohio.”

Puzzle Map of North America from the Latest Authorities
Author unknown, undated.

This paper map is glued onto a thin wood base and includes the cities of Detroit and Sandusky, but not Chicago or St. Louis, which is shown as “Ft. Masac.” The map features the Columbia River, described alternatively as “River of the West.” Canada is represented by pale green coloring.

Carte Generale de Etats de Virginie, Maryland, Delaware, Pensilvanie, Nouveau Jersey, New York, Connecticut et Isle de Rhodes
Undated.

This map, plagiarized and updated from the maps of Louis Evans and Thomas Jefferys, features both French and English geographical information, including Etat de Kentuke (Kentucky), suggesting the map was published after Kentucky’s statehood in 1792. Towns represented on the map include: Pittsbourg, F. Sandusky, Louisville and Oswego.

The Gentleman's Magazine Map of North America
Author unknown, April 1744.

This map is a remarkably accurate portrayal on a fold-out page of the Gentleman’s Magazine, published in London. It shows the eastern seaboard states extending to the Mississippi River.

Esquisse des Rivieres Muskinghum, Esquisse du Sioto and Grand Castor
Created by Tardieu, undated.

These maps are based upon Journal du General Bouquet, les Lettres d’un Cultivateur Ameriquain, and Journal du Gl. Richard Butler, respectively. In 1764, Bouquet, then a colonel, led an expedition from Fort Pitt to Coshocton, Ohio, to free more than 200 captives of the American Indians. Three separate maps are represented here side-by-side on a single sheet. The maps include many geographical details, including the Fleuve de l’Ohyo (Ohio River), as well as information about the location of known American Indian villages of the time.

Ohio and Indiana
Author unknown, undated but likely published circa 1835

This map depicts all of the Ohio & Erie Canal, but only a portion of the Miami Erie Canal, from Cincinnati to Dayton, is shown. Upon its completion, the canal ultimately led to Lake Erie. The map also shows the northwest border of Ohio at that time, which included in Michigan the mouth of the Maumee River and what is now Toledo.

A New Map of Part of the United States of North America
Created by John Cary, 1806.

This map shows the United States north of North Carolina and east of western Ohio, including the Scioto River. The map incorrectly identifies Ohio not as a state but as the Western Territory of the United States.

A New General Map of America
Created by Emanuel Bowen, undated.

This map shows the Western Hemisphere from the Solomon Isles in the west to the edge of Spain to the east. The borders of the eastern seaboard states of the United States are inaccurately shown, with western Pennsylvania not included in that state. The Louisiana Territory is shown on both sides of the Mississippi River, as in the d’Anville map.

America Septentrionalis
Created by Jan Jansson/Henricus Hondius, circa 1641.

This earliest map of the collection represents the first separate Dutch atlas map of North America. The state of California is seen here as an island floating off the west coast of North America, which was a common misconception among early map makers. In addition, only one of the Great Lakes is shown, Lac des Iroquois, which is present day Lake Ontario. The portrayal of the other four Great Lakes awaited later mapmakers.

NOTE: The Kingsley A. Taft Map Room is not a part of the self-guided tour of the Ohio Judicial Center, but it may be viewed by appointment. For more information call 614.387.9000.