Summary

Description

The Historical Map and Chart Collection of the Office of Coast Survey contains over 20000 historical maps and charts from the mid 1700s through the late 1900s. These images are available for viewing or download through the image catalog at http://chartmaker.ncd.noaa.gov/csdl/ctp/abstract.htmThe Collection includes some of the nation's earliest nautical charts, hydrographic surveys, topographic surveys, geodetic surveys, city plans and Civil War battle maps. The Collection is a rich primary historical archive and a testament to the artistry of copper plate engraving technology of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Notable offerings include maps of Vancouver's explorations, the "Wilkes Atlas" of the U.S. Whistler's Anacapa Island chart, an extensive Civil War collection, a large scale topographic series of Washington, D.C., city plans, the reengraving of the famous 1792 L'Enfant and Ellicott plan for Washington D.C., and many artistic perspective sketches that were once an integral part of hydrographic surveys and published charts.