Map of the Great Salt Lake and Adjacent Country in the Territory of Utah.

1852 Stansbury Map of Utah and the Great Salt Lake, Presentation Edition

Published by Publication Date: 1852

Very good. Toning along fold lines. Very light foxing. Dissected and laid on linen. Folds into hard case. An excellent example. Size 44 x 31 Inches. An iconic map of the American West, this is a beautiful presentation edition of Howard Stansbury's crucial mapping of the Great Salt Lake, the earliest accurate survey of the region. Originally published in 1852 as part of the Stansbury Report presented to the U.S. Congress that year, the present example is mounted on linen and folds into a case, as it was intended for a member of Congress. This is hand-down the finest example we've seen of this map, and if you are considering it for your collection, this is the one you want. A Closer Look Covering the Great Salt Lake, Utah Lake, and their immediate surroundings, Stansbury's map is the result of a monumental feat of exploration and scientific tenacity. The detail throughout is extraordinary, identifying springs, rivers, passes, important buildings, American Indian settlements, canals, etc. Stansbury's work and this map are responsible for creating much of the region's nomenclature, but where it is not, both Mormon and American Indian names are provided. This is also one of the earliest maps to delineate the street plan of Salt Lake City (still 'Great Salt Lake City' here). Stansbury attempts to provide useful information for the traveler. Both the Emigrant Road from California (passing north of the lake) and the Pilot Peak Road to California (Passing South of the Lake) are shown. He also provides useful commentary, for example in the lower left This desert consists of clay and sand impregnated with salt. When wet, it has the consistency of mortar. Lightly loaded wagons can pass between Spring Valley and Pilot Peak in the driest part of the season. Forage and water must be carried for cattle, and the journey begun in the P. M. and continued through the night. Distance between springs 70 ms. As much as possible, Stansbury includes nautical details and depth soundings for both the Great Salt Lake and Utah Lake. In the process of creating the first hydrographic survey of the lake, the Stansbury team was also the first to identify and chart Great Salt Lake's islands, as might be deduced form their names: Stansbury Island, Carrington Island, Gunnison Island, and Fremont Island. A Seminal Map of the American West Carl Wheat, in his classic study of American exploration, Mapping the Transmississippi West , devotes considerable attention to this important map, Obviously a major production. an illuminating map of Great Salt Lake, Utah Lake, their respective valleys, and a portion of â Youab' (Juab) Valley to the south. This map permanently established the cartography and many place names of northwestern Utah. One of its most attractive features is that it gives the Indian as well as the Mormon names of the various creeks draining from the mountains. For Great Salt Lake itself the map was definitive, of course, permanent names being given to all the islands and shoreline features. Scientific cartography for the Territory of Utah may be said to date from the appearance of this map. Similarly, William Goetzmann emphasized the importance of the map and the intrepidness of the expedition which created it: It had been a daring feat of exploration, succeeding where the mountain men had all failed, and by means of his map of the western portion of the lake, Stansbury had painted at least one more bold stroke into the unfinished portrait of the national landscape. Following the completion of this map, Stansbury and his team returned east, in the process surveying part of the route and creating another important map of the area. A year after this map was presented in Washington, Gunnison was commissioned to return to the region to survey a viable route for the Pacific Railroad. In the process of completing this project, Gunnison and several other members of his party were killed in an ambush (see biography below), delaying the survey and the develop. Seller Inventory # GreatSaltLake-stansbury-1852-3

Bibliographic Details

Title: Map of the Great Salt Lake and Adjacent ...
Publication Date: 1852