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The Cerographic Atlas of the United States.
New York: Sidney E. Morse & Co., 1842. Folio (16.75” x 14.5”), printed blue wrappers, text within ornamental borders. 16 single-page cerographic engravings. CONDITION: Good, contents mostly loose in wrappers, foxed throughout, a few small losses to edges of wrappers, creasing and/or folds to corners of some sheets. Part one of the rare, serially-issued, first-ever atlas to use cerographic printing—an experimental wax-engraving technique—with an account of the development of the process, featuring sixteen maps of US states and territories. Cerography was invented by newspaper publisher Sidney Edwards Morse (1794–1871) in the late 1830s while he was serving as head of the New-York Observer. Morse’s father was Jedediah Morse (1761–1826), a geographer and preacher who published the first geography textbook in the US, earning him the moniker “the father of American geography.” His brother Samuel F. B. Morse (1791–1872) was a painter and telegraphy pioneer, best known for inventing the Morse code. Samuel Breese, listed as a collaborator on the atlas, appears to have been a cousin of Morse. Other cerographic works by Morse include Morse’s North American Atlas (1845) and A System of Geography for the Use of Schools (1845), including numerous maps of US states and cities from the same period. Morse’s cerographic process involved engraving an image into a wax layer (“cera” being Latin for wax), which was then transferred onto a durable printing plate. Morse comments that the process blends elements of lithography, copperplate, and woodblock printing, enabling the production of high-quality maps at a significantly lower cost. The first part of The Cerographic Atlas is followed by parts No. 2 (published 1843) and No. 3 (1845), bearing the same title. The compiled work was republished in 1845 as Morse’s North American Atlas, which contains some alterations to the original maps, including the addition of color, as well as some substitutions. The inside of the front wrapper includes advertisements for various printers, publishers and booksellers, along with a publisher’s note where Morse elaborates on the logistical difficulties and high initial expense involved that delayed the full publication: “In preparing [this atlas], difficulties have been encountered of which the public can form no adequate conception.” Morse offers gratitude to his assistant, Henry A. Munson, with whom he co-developed cerography, and urges subscribers to be patient in awaiting the publication of the remaining maps. Also thanked are Sherman & Smith, another New York map publisher, for providing up-to-date information from the western frontier. In spite of the challenges faced, Morse speaks of an optimistic future for cerography, which he predicts will “place the needle…in the hand of Genius, and enable it to make its master-strokes without the danger of losing their spirit in the translation of the Engraver.” Maps of sixteen states and territories—and two maps of New York City— form the core of the atlas. They show cities, counties, railroads, canals, and other natural features. Most of these use a dual coordinate system, featuring both Greenwich and Washington meridians. The atlas begins in New England, with maps of Maine (showing the disputed northern boundary); Vermont & New Hampshire; and Connecticut. The Mid-Atlantic states follow—New Jersey; Maryland & Delaware (featuring an inset of D.C. and elevation sections of Chesapeake & Ohio canal and Baltimore & Ohio railroad); and Virginia. Next appear maps of several midwestern and southern states and territories, which are overlaid in part or full with grid lines, reflecting the Public Land Survey System used to divide newly-acquired territory. These maps include Ohio; Iowa (the eastern part); Mississippi; Louisiana; Georgia; and Alabama. A map of New York state follows, accompanied by two maps of New York City—Downtown Manhattan, and Lower Manhattan with Brooklyn. The atlas concludes with a map of Florida. Sidney E. Morse & Co. is listed as the publisher, indicating it was an initiative closely related to Morse’s newspaper, the New-York Observer (1829–1912), a Presbyterian publication. The Observer covered both religious and secular topics, often taking conservative stances on social issues—prior to the Civil War it opposed abolition. After the war, the Observer adopted a more pan-Protestant tone and reached its peak influence, before switching to a smaller format in the 1890s. This atlas is styled as a “supplement to the New-York Observer,” with Morse writing in the publisher’s note that he intends to produce “17,000 copies of the three Atlases, which we are to send to our subscribers,” although it is unlikely this many were ever produced owing to publishing setbacks. REFERENCES: Rumsey 4180; “Sidney E. Morse” at Litchfield Historical Society online; “New-York Observer (New-York) 1829-1912 [Microfilm Reel]” at Library of Congress online.
Item #6568
Price: $750.00
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