John Calvin Smith (1809-1890). Guide Through Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Wisconsin, and Iowa. Showing the Township lines of the United States Surveys, Location of Cities, Towns, Villages, Post Hamlets, Canals, Rail and Stage Roads (New York: J. H. Colton, 86 Cedar St., 1854). Pocket map lithographed by Stiles, Sherman & Smith with bright original full and outline hand color. 20 1/2 x 25 in. at ornamental border. Sheet size: 21 1/4 x 26 ¼ in. Accompanied by original 12mo green cloth booklet with blind-embossed front and back covers, title in gilt: “Map of the Western States / J. H. Colton.” Advertisement for maps by Colton & Co. on front pastedown. Scenic vignette at bottom center: “Maidens Rock, Lake Pepin, on the Mississippi.” Table in u/r corner showing “Steam Boat Routes and Distances by Water.” In l/l corner, a table of distances by land. Several small stains in u/r quadrant and at edge of l/l margin. Old glue stain at l/r corner. A few minor fold splits. Overall, fine condition with exceptional color. $1,200.
$1,200.00
“In 1839, J. H. Colton issued the first edition of his Western Tourist and Emigrant’s Guide,” according to Ristow, “which was originally drawn and copyrighted by J. Calvin Smith and engraved by Stiles, Sherman & Smith. It went through a number of editions to about 1855. The guide includes a map of Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Wisconsin, & Iowa,” which Colton also offered in the separately issued pocket format offered here. The map presents an accurate and fascinating view of the region during the 1850s, an important decade in the development of the Midwest. Railroads were transforming the area by increasing the flow of goods and services as well as the influx of immigrants. The map indicates the progress of western settlement by showing states and territories with varying amounts of information depending on the stage of development, which ranges from the almost fully settled Ohio to the mostly unsurveyed Minnesota. Interestingly, a tiny slice of eastern Kansas is labeled “Indian Territory,” indicating that the map was published just before the delimitation of former Indian lands in 1854 by the creation of the Kansas and Nebraska territories.”
In the mid-1800s, Smith and his partner George Sherman specialized in publishing guidebooks and travelers’ maps, of which the present is an exceptional example. Highly detailed, the map offers a wealth of information on all “physical aspects of each state and territory,” as one contemporary writer noted, “without which it is impossible [for the traveler] to proceed understandingly on his journey.” The map meticulously plots railroad routes, canals, and stage roads, and shows townships, state capitals, towns, villages, rivers, and lakes. Railroad hubs stand out—in particular, Columbus, Ohio, and Indianapolis—documenting their rise as important urban centers.
An exquisite example of this beautiful 1850s map of the Midwest, in the rare pocket format produced by the great nineteenth-century American collaboration of Smith, Sherman, and J. H. Colton.
Ref.: Ristow, American Maps and Mapmakers, p. 316.
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