Blast from the Past!

We love “rediscovering” historic resources from our collections.  Recently we happened upon a government document from the 1890’s that mapped battle sites and fortifications from the Civil War.  Published between 1891 and 1895, the 3 volume set Atlas to Accompany the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies contains reprints of state and territorial maps, plans of battles and military campaigns, as well as etchings of landscapes and battlefield panoramas.  Primary resources don’t get much better than this!

Atlases: Part 7, Census and Business Atlases

Census and Business Atlases: The final entry in our series on Atlases covers miscellaneous atlases on topics that do not neatly fit into the previous categories.

2000 Commercial Atlas & Marketing Guide. This atlas contains detailed information on the transportation, economy and population of the United States. Aimed at business planners, the charts include information on regional trading areas, statistics on sales comparing the population/income/sales of a given area and detailed demographic information on areas that can be used to find basic business data on almost any location in the United States. Color

Atlas of the 1990 Census: This is a short atlas published with data from the 1990 census. It covers population, household makeup, housing, race and ethnicity, the economy and education. It contains a combination of text and charts and can be used for comparisons with the 2000 atlas described below. Text. Color.

Census Atlas of the United States. The official atlas published after the 2000 census by the U.S. government. It contains statistics and charts showing population distribution, race, age, sex, living arrangement, place of birth and U.S. Citizenship, migration, language, ancestry, education, work, military service, income and housing of the residents of the United States in 2000. There is a short text at the beginning of each section explaining patterns revealed by the data. Color

World Travel Atlas 1999. This interesting atlas has four main sections, General maps, Specialist maps (including Natural Heritage sites, Cultural Heritage Sites, International Flight times, info on ocean cruises (showing main areas where cruises take place). Very interesting information for planning a trip showing things like Hill Stations and Beach resorts in India, the Swiss Alps, route of the blue train in South Africa and many other sites and activities of interest to travelers.

Atlases: Part 6, Religious Atlases

Religious Atlases: In addition to the historical atlases, Hewes library contains a small number of atlases dedicated to the history of religion. Again the use of text and color illustrations is indicated after the entry.

Atlas of Islamic History: Unlike the Historical Atlas of Islam, this atlas contains text along with the maps explaining the development of Islam from its beginnings until the mid-twentieth century. It primarily concentrates on the Middle East and Europe showing how Islam and Islamic empires developed and changed over the centuries, with each map showing the developments of a given century. It has small sections on Islam in other parts of the world. B&W
Atlas of the Historical Geography of the Holy Land: An old (1915) map describing the physical, political , and economic geography of the Holy Land during the time prior to the establishment of the ancient kingdoms of Israel to the early years of the Christian era. Color.

Biblica: the Bible Atlas: A beautifully illustrated book containing text, illustrations, maps and charts illustrating the timeline of the events of the Bible from the time of Adam and Eve until the Revelation of John. It begins with explaining the difficulties inherent in developing a chronology of the Bible and the approach used in the book. Text, Color.

Historical Atlas of Islam: Illustrates the growth of Islam throughout the world from the time of Muhammad until the 19th century through the use of maps. There are special sections on the Ottoman Empire, the Muslim conquest and expulsion from Spain and Portugal, the development of Islam in India and the Far East, and even a section on Arabic names for the constellations. Color.

Atlases: Part 5, American Atlases

American Atlases: These atlases cover the history of the United States and Canada.

Atlas of Early American History: The Revolutionary Era 1760-90: This Atlas has a wealth of information on the early history of the United States. Included are visual representations of the largest cities in the American Colonies, the boundaries between the states, the Spanish borderlands, Indian settlements, population maps showing the distribution of urban and rural population, the non-English population, African American population, as well as the economic, cultural and political activities of the colonies. If you need any information on America at the time prior to and during the American Revolution, look here as there are few aspects of life that are not covered. Text. Color.

Atlas of the International Boundary between the United States and Canada along the 141st Meridian. A historical curiosity, this atlas was published by the U.S. government in 1918 as a result of a survey conducted by geographers from the U.S. and Great Britain from 1907-13 to determine the boundary between what is now the panhandle of the state of Alaska and Canada. The boundaries of the area were disputed until 1903 when the Alaskan boundary commission determined where the line was to be. The area was subsequently surveyed and the results published officially by the U.S. government in this book. Color.

Illustrated Historical Atlas of the State of Indiana: A reprint of an 1876 atlas which shows the cities, towns, settlements, railroads and geographic features of Indiana. B&W.

National Atlas of the United States of America: Visual representation of America’s physical geography, history, economy, administrative details (time zones, voting districts, federal courts), and socio-cultural information. Published in 1970, it has a maps and charts illustrating such diverse topics as navigation, air pollution and geographic expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctica. Text, color.

West Point Atlas of American Wars: This is the premier set of Atlases describing the various conflicts America has been engaged in beginning in 1689 until 1953. It was originally prepared for the use of cadets at the United States Military Academy at West Point. In addition to detailed maps and descriptions of the Revolution, Civil and World Wars, it also covers Colonial Wars, the War of 1812, and the Mexican, Spanish-American and Korean War. If you are looking for information and detailed battle charts for any major American conflict, this is the book. Text, B&W maps, color battle lines and movements.

Atlases: Part 4, Historical Atlases

Hewes Library has a number of interesting historical atlases that give graphic views of the countries and events of the past. Unlike the atlases in the other entries, not all of these atlases have color illustrations. The presence or absence of color illustrations is indicated after the entry. The use of the word “text” after an entry indicates that there is a lot of explanatory material accompanying the charts and maps. Not included in these historical atlases are those referring to the United States or those that deal with the world’s religions. These will be covered in future entries.

Atlas of Ancient History: Primarily a history of Greece and Rome in maps, although other areas that affected the development of the Classical World (such the Persian and Carthaginian empires) are included. The period from 1700 B.C. to the early years of the Byzantine Empire under Justinian I is illustrated. B&W

Atlas of British History: The maps display the history of Great Britain from 50 B.C. until 1967. In addition to maps showing the early history of the country including the Norse and Danish invasions, there are maps showing where events significant to Britain or its Empire occurred, such at Waterloo and the World Wars. British colonial ventures in the New World are also depicted. Given the far-flung nature of British political and economic concerns, much of the history of the world is depicted in these charts. Color. Text.

Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World. This very large atlas illustrates a wider range of geographic areas that comprised and influenced the Greek and Roman world than either the Atlas of Ancient History or the Atlas of Classical History. These two atlases concentrate on illustrating historical events. The idea behind the Barrington atlas was to make clear to students and scholars the relationship between the land and historic events. The maps display the topography of areas, with ancient cities, roads and geographical features clearly displayed. The maps are not organized by the current names of places, but by their ancient names, with a large map at the front showing which portion of the world it illustrates. There is a good index at the back useful in locating where an ancient location is displayed. Color.

Atlas of Classical History: Unlike the Atlas of Ancient History, which contains almost no text, this Atlas is a combination of text and illustration showing the development of ancient Greece and Rome from 6500 B.C to 314 AD. B&W

Atlas of Russian and East European History: Shows in graphic form the many changes endured by the lands of Eastern Europe and Russia during their history. This region of the world changed hands more times than be counted and each invasion, uprising, and establishment of a kingdom/empire is illustrated. The maps cover the period dating from the Barbarian invasions of the 4th century to the establishment of the Eastern block of nations under the control of the Soviet Union after World War II. Each section of maps is prefaced by a short introduction. B&W

Atlas of War & Peace: Bosnia Herzegovina: A brief introduction to the many forces that resulted in the war leading to the separation of Bosnia and Herzegovina from the former Yugoslavia in 1996. This small Atlas gives a short explanation of the “Who-What-Where-When-Why-How” of the conflict, along with many maps illustrating the region. Text. Color.

Atlas of World History: A large book showing the history of the world in a combination of text, charts and maps. It covers the period 9000 B.C. until the early 1990s. A useful feature is a timeline found at the front of the book that gives a side by side comparison of what was happening where and when, along with cultural milestones. For instance, in the mid-16th century while the English were defeating the Spanish Armada, the independent kingdom of Siam (Thailand) was founded, the Moroccans destroyed the Donghay kingdom in Africa and tobacco was introduced into Europe. This is a good place to find charts and maps of many historic events. (Text, color)

Forma Urbis Romae: This is a reprint of the famous work of the Italian archaeologist Rodolfo Lanciani who published a 1:1000 scale map of the ancient, medieval and modern city of Rome between 1893 and 1901. Each chart describes an individual section of the city. Unfortunately, the text of the pamphlet included with the maps is in Italian. B&W

Historical Atlas of South Asia: Although this atlas says “South Asia” it is actually a detailed historical atlas of the region surrounding India, including Pakistan, Nepal, and Sri Lanka (formerly called Ceylon) If you need any information on this region’s history, geography and development you will find it in this atlas with its combination of text, maps and charts. (Color)

Historical Atlas of South-East Asia: Many maps and text that graphically illustrate the many changes and influences experienced by this region throughout its history. The colorful charts show things like: the prehistoric migrations of people, the development of various Kingdoms such as the Hindu, Khmer and Mongol, trade routes, regional archaeological sites and the locations of twentieth century conflicts. Color.

Poland: A Historical Atlas: Illustrates the history of Poland. From its beginnings in 600, the Polish people have passed through many statuses from independent kingdoms and republics to a total loss of independence during times of invasion and partition, until becoming a part of the Soviet bloc after World War II. The recent establishment of an independent Poland is not covered by this atlas, which was published in 1985, before the collapse of the Soviet Union. B&W

Atlases: Part 3, Country and Regional Atlases

In addition to the World Atlases, Hewes library has some more detailed regional/country atlases that give more information on an area than what is found in the traditional Atlas.

Atlas de Espana: A two volume atlas of Spain published in Spanish by El Pais, a Spanish news service. The first volume has detailed maps of mainland Spain and its islands (the Azores, Balerics, Canaries and Maderia). The second volume has charts, text and photographs detailing Spain’s commerce, culture, geography and geology. (in Spanish)

Atlas of Japan: An older Atlas with detailed information on the physical, economic and social aspects of Japan in the 1970s. The climate and ocean current information is still useful.

Atlas of Israel: A very large Atlas containing a huge amount of information on a very small, but very significant country. In addition to the usual things found in a regional Atlas, it also contains historical maps of the area showing significant archeological sites and the history of the region from prehistoric times through the biblical kingdom of Israel, through Arab and Ottoman rule to the modern state of Israel.

Atlas of Modern Israel: This older atlas contains useful basic information on the geography, climate, geology and flora and fauna found in the region. The most interesting parts of the Atlas relate to the history and origins of the state of Israel and it also has an interesting entry on places on the country that are holy to various faith groups including Jews, Christians, Muslims, Druze and Bahais.

Atlas of the South Pacific: Very detailed maps, with short entries on the people, industries and geography of a little known region of the world.

Landscape atlas of the USSR: An old Atlas published by the United States Military Academy at West Point that contains detailed geological and geographic information on the country that was the Soviet Union. This atlas clearly demonstrates how geology and landscape influence settlement, industry and agriculture in the region.

New Zealand Atlas: Contains information on the geological formation of the islands and how that has influenced settlement and development of the one of the world’s most remote countries. It also has the most detailed maps of New Zealand.

State of China Atlas: Contains many colored maps containing information on the people, culture, economy and political system of China.

The U.S.S. R. and Eastern Europe is an Oxford University Press publication from the 1950s. This atlas is interesting in that Russia and Eastern Europe were closed societies at that time, and this atlas represents a “best guess” as to economic and industrial conditions found in these countries.

Atlases: Part 2, Traditional Atlases

Hewes library has many “traditional” Atlases in its collection. These all show a range of information on the many countries and regions of the world ranging from detailed road and topographic maps of the earth to charts explaining the geographic and geologic features of the planet to historical maps illustrating the location of various empires over time.

All of the Atlases detailed in this section have roads and topographic features displayed, but the unusual features of each are described below.

Britannica Atlas has a small section of historical maps, information on major industries, claims made by various countries of navigable waters, and English, German, French, Spanish and Portuguese indexes of any given location. It also has regional and detailed national information of some areas. The maps vary in scale of the maps, some very detailed, some not so detailed.

Collegiate Atlas of the World is published by National Geographic, so it has very good illustrations and maps. The Atlas incorporates satellite images into the different topics covered and uses information from global and national sources such as World Health Organization, U.S. Government and the World Wildlife Fund. In addition to the charts, maps, images, there are nuggets of trivia found in each section.

Hammond 5th Edition World Atlas: It has a good Table of Contents that shows where to find locations. It contains very current data (up to 2008) and has information and statistics on a wide variety of topics. Has a section of satellite images of cities, mountains and coastlines.

Macmillan Centennial Atlas of the World and Planet Earth: Uses satellite images, all maps to the same scale, all major roads shown. These are geographic atlases containing maps and none of the extraneous information. The Centennial Atlas has detailed maps of major cities from Amsterdam to Wash D.C. and the major city maps use the local language to describe features, including Arabic, Chinese and Japanese scripts/characters along with the Western script.

New Century World Atlas: Contains a world flags section in the front and has a good index. This atlas has information on a wide variety of topics including: global relationships of different environments, population, religion, standards of living, literacy, manufacturing and industry, land use and regional mineral resources. It ends with a collection of world statistics.

Oxford Atlas of the World 2005: An atlas that contains information on many different topics including: conflict, energy, travel and tourism, global warming, the stars, planets, world cities, regions and oceans. The text incorporates maps, charts and photos to illustrate the different topics.

Peters Atlas ‘philosophy is that all countries should be displayed as equally important, so the same map scale was used for each. The map section is the first half of the book, each map being 1/60 of the world’s surface. The second half displays charts and maps on different themes primarily geographic features, but also contains other information like climates, volcanoes, hurricane/typhoon prone regions, languages, education, etc. It also has charts of intangibles like “inequality”, “social order” and the “status of women” (mostly derived from United Nations Data, but in some cases they made their own estimates of information)

Times Atlas of the World: This old 1959 atlas is before the disintegration of the U.S.S.R. into Russia and other states and the establishment of many of the current African States, so is a good reference to use if you are looking to see what places were named and what they looked like 50 years ago. It contains other interesting information such as the world’s surface routes (roads, railways) and major air routes of the time.

Atlas Mundial: Spanish language world atlas 1998.

A curiosity in this collection is an Italian automobile club atlas of the world from the 1950s.

Atlases: Part 1, What is an Atlas and why should I use one?

Most people if they are familiar with Atlases at all think of the Rand McNally Road Atlas which shows maps of the major roads and routes one can take while driving through the United States. However, Atlases contain much more information than maps and cover many more subjects than the location of the nearest highway.

There are several types of Atlases, ranging from the general purpose map atlas to a wide range of specialty Atlases covering differing locations, historical periods and events. The one thing they all have in common is a copious use of charts, maps and other illustrations containing a variety of information designed to illustrate the relationship between a geographic location and a given topic. An Atlas graphically illustrates the interrelationship of a location’s geography and geology to its history and economic development. Some of the many topics covered by atlases include agriculture, business and industry, climate, geology, history, languages, population, religion, and the natural resources found in a geographic area.

Atlases can be used as visual aids to more easily explain a topic in a speech, paper or other presentation. Hewes library has numerous Atlases covering several different areas and they will be covered in this series of Research Tips.

But first, a little history of the Atlas. The first Atlas was printed in the 16th century by Gerardus Mercator, the inventor of a technique now known as the Mercator projection which is used to design the maps used by navigators to plot a straight line course to and from any location. On his first published book of maps, he placed a picture of the Greek Titan Atlas, holding the world on his shoulders, as the frontispiece of the book. This led to the title “Atlas” being used to describe any collection of maps, charts and other information that visually explain a given geographic area.

The Hewes library atlases are found on a tall desk to the right of the door to the Information systems office in the library. They can all be used in the library, but are not available for checkout. The next tip will discuss traditional Atlases found in the library.