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VINTAGE MAP- SOLD FOR £16 ONLY- NO AUCTION- NO POSTAGE FEE FOR 2ND CLASS UK.

SELLER'S CODE: 180620153

AN UNUSUAL, EARLY MAP OF THE PRE WAR ORDNANCE SURVEY 1920S SERIES FOR SCOTLAND

1920s

KILLIN AND LOCH RANNOCH SCOTLAND

in Argyllshire, Perthshire and Inverness-shire.

1925-26-27

One of the most evocative and fascinating pieces of landscape on

the Scottish Mainland

here from a surprisingly early 1859-70 Full Survey, revised 1925 and again in 1926 published 1927

THIS IS A VINTAGE ORDNANCE SURVEY SHEET CALLED THE (PRE WAR) “POLULAR EDITION SHEET 55” WHICH EQUATES WITH SERIES 4 OR 5 MAP OF THE 1920-30s ENGLISH AND WELSH ORDNANCE SURVEY

Classic Scottish Series, with the Scottish Lion Arms in a bold red form adorning the front cover. Here showing one of the less populated or perhaps more depopulated regions of the Kingdom of Scotland or the Island of Great Britain.

NUMBER AND NAME:

“ORDNANCE SURVEY OF SCOTLAND-KILLIN & LOCH RANNOCH- POPULAR SHEET 55 ”

A 1 INCH TO THE MILE SCALE MAP

featuring:

LOCH TAY, KILLIN, GLEN LOCHAY, GLEN ORCHY (PART), LOCH TULLA, LOCH AIDON,

LOCH RANNOCH, RANNOCH , BLACKATER RESERVOIR, LOCH BA, LOCH LYON, GLEN

LYON

THIS MAP IS OF PARTICULAR INTEREST FOR HISTORIANS OF:

Highland Scotland between the Wars

Highland Scotland as mapped in the 1920S

The highland railways and roads of Scotland.

The LM & SR and LNER in the Scottish Highlands

The Grampians

Rannoch, Tay, Glen Lyon, in the 1920s

Army and Military Roads dating from the Jacobite Uprisings

The Steam Railways of Scotland

Gaelic Place Names and Scots Place Names

Remnant Forests

SUMMARY:

MAP: Linen backed, complete, folded into 21 sections, very little if any wear on fold junctions.

SCALE: 1 inch to the mile

GRID: The grid is of 2 mile square, not the kilometre squares of the National Grid

OVERALL SIZE: Roughly 30 by 23 inches

FOLDED INTO: 21 sections

COVERS : Classic red black and buff Pre war floating covers of the Scottish Ordnance Survey. Back cover has an index map on it and a decorative title cartouche from the 1920s

THE NORTH WEST CORNER OF THIS MAP IS AT: Allt an Inbhir near the Blackwater Reservoir

THE NORTH EAST CORNER OF THIS MAP IS AT: Mullinavadie

THE SOUTH EAST CORNER OF THIS MAP IS AT: Creag Uchdag

THE SOUTH WEST CORNER OF THIS MAP IS AT: Beinn Udlaidh

THE CENTRE OF THIS MAP IS AT: Ford between Loch Giorra and Loch Daimh.

FEATURES OF PARTICULAR NOTE HERE:

RAILWAYS:

The LNER Railway enters at south west corner 20 miles from Killin and runs due north to Bridge of Orchy, then north east and off the map north west without stopping at another station. It clings always to the eastern side of the glens- perhaps these tend to be more snow free and moderated by sun.

19 miles north of Callander the LM&SR railway enters the map at south east and runs to a terminus station at Tay Station Tirarthur. Killin station is right by the river north of the town although the track passes the eastern edge of the community It is on the bank of River Lochay just before it enters the western loch. This must be the same railway as that seen in the west of tha map having descrived a 20 mile loop south and east. Oddly though the western line is marked as London and North Eastern Railway, this terminus branch to the Loch is London Midland and Scottish Railway- the two companies have, on this map “swapped sides” in the country.

KILLIN ON THIS PRE WAR 1920s MAP

This small town is on the western bank of the river, two roads run south to Callander- but that on the north side of the river is much more of a mountain track;,and one road runs either side of Loch Tay towards Aberfeldy which is 11 miles distant from the eastern edge of the map.

The woods of Killin are mixed and might be genuine remnants of the Caledonian Forest and not just plantations. They rise up the fell sides to about 875 feet which might be the natural tree line at this latitude.

Killin has three churches or chapels all clustered in the north of the town. The old town is probably near the bridge over the Abainn and here it is marked Monomore. There are five bridges at Killin- the old one in the south of the town, the 2 Railway bridges, the bridge taking the road east along the north bank of Loch Tay and the bridge over the River Lochay taking the road west. Another crosses the burn to the south of Loch Tay running east. The west road, stops after 6 ½ miles to become a track and then a mile and a ½ later it becomes a footpath with stops at Banvain. Though a linear ton clustered either side of the main road, there are side streets in the north west and north east and from the west a track passes up onto the southern sloped of Meall Clachach where perhaps there was a mine once. A stone circle is marked east of the town on flat river land and an outlying hamlet to the east is called Achmore. On a war time survey the Killin main church is marked differently as if it had been rebuilt – here they are all marked with a simple “+” denoting a chapel without tower or spire.

KINLOCH RANNOCH AS MAPPED IN THE 1920S, AND BEFORE THE WAR

This small community lies between Loch Rannoch and Loch Dunalstaire , OFF THE MAP, – both of which are marked on the War time map as reservoirs and owned by the Grampian Electricity Supply Company, but they are not so marked here. The village is clustered about the bridge- mostly north of the bridge which is a short stretch of the River Gaur. It has a church with a tower and a chapel, a Manse down by the water's edge, a weir regulating the run off from Loch Rannoch and an ancient site south of the village called Clach Na Botle sheltered to the north by Beinn a'Chuallaich and a woodland on its lower slopes it has a golf course on the flat land south of the village by the river. Rannock Barracks are marked at the western end of the loch. On the war map, a road strikes north to Kungussie which is 41 miles off the top of the map but no such road is marked here in the 1920s.

OTHER CURIOSITIES AND POINTS OF INTEREST ON THIS MAP

The Blackwater Reservoir at north west on this map is owned and its waster used by the British Aluminium Company Ltd – perhaps that same water is piped towards Fort William where tunnels owned by the company are marked entering from the east. The centre line of this loch is also the Argyll, Inverness Shire border. But the border is erratic and it is interesting that most of the islands of the lake are claimed by Argyll with the border passing north to accomodate them

The Woods on the southern bank of Loch Rannoch are the most extensive here and are mixed, deciduous and the old pines of the Caledonian Forest- this is called the Black Wood of Rannoch.

This is a very interesting landscape for place names because it is far from the sea and so the Norse influence, evident in the Gaelic of the West Coast is not present- So Sgurr is not seen.

Mountain names: Ben is a Scots version of a Gaelic “beinn” which is pronounced with a “p” at the front. Coire seems to be a Gaelic equivalent to a Cwm. Carn and Cairn may be Old Welsh remnants for that was the ancestral language of Scotland prior to the arrival of Gaelic or Scots.

Abhainn is common- suggesting that the Gaelic language was either spoken or not long extinct when this map was made. Beinn is more common than Ben- showing the effect of Scots on these mountain names is minimal.

Sgiath is common here but rare in the West- it means “wing” which must be a poetic name for an angular mountain ridge.

Meall is a common hill name in the south eastern third of this map suggesting the hills there are rounder in this region and more rugged to the north and west.

The most common colour in the toponyms of this landscape is “glas”- which is greenish grey, Dearg (red) is present but rare- on the Ben Nevis map it was the most frequent colour.

Scots creeps into the mountain names in “Mid Hill” near Killin, “Black Mount” in the west and Blackwater in the north West. River Lochay, River Gaur and River Lyon also suggest a landscape in which Gaelic is gone or in retreat.

A Gaelic-Scots hybrid is apparent in the dialect where place names such as Bridge of Gaur show clearly a Scots toponym but a Gaelic word order- Noun-Adjective.

Interesting “Garbh Ghaoir” of the North West becames “River Gaur” of the north centre- though slender as evidence, it does suggest that Scots permeated this interior highland landscape from the East. Lawer's Burn in the far east of the map, a Scots name of Northumbrian origin which has no parallel in the west of this map.

The ancestral language of this region was Old Welsh or Bruthonic with Gaelic an interloper from the west and Scots and interloper from the east- both arriving in the 6th century onwards. Brythonic remnants are difficult here- Creag and Tal are rare examples- meaning “rock” and “end”

WHAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT ASPECT OF THE GEOGRAPHY AND GEOLOGY MAPPED HERE?

I think the remnant woods and trees of the 1920s are interesting. The woods are extensive round Loch Rannoch and almost certainly enclosed. The woods do not thrive on the high lands because of deer or sheep. There is an extensive region of scattered individual trees in the hills of south Rannoch District and in Glen Lochan- what these represent are large old and mature trees of the Great Caledonian Forest which can withstand the ravaged of deer and sheep. They are individually plotted here like erratic stones in the landscape. But they do not regenerate. It would be interesting to compare this map with those of the 1930s, 1950s-60s and later years to see what has happened. They could survive hundreds of years but the likelihood is that, on their demise the landscape becomes treeless. Note that the enclosed woods of Loch Rannoch are mixed deciduous and coniferous. In England this would signify plantation, but not here where the Scots pine is endemic. The Ordnance Survey of Scotland and that of England, do not differentiate between trees – this might be compared with other National mapping services: the Istituto Geografico Militare have symbols for about 10 species. It might be, on a modern map of this region, that the Scottish Forestry Commission has planted some of this landscape. A particularly interesting piece of woodland is seen on the LNER railway at Allt Choire an Lochain, where the western half is enclosed and flourishes and the eastern half is not enclosed and remains as geriatric remnants. It will also be noted that this landscape has a tree line at 17600 ft in the west of the map, 1200 feet in the middle of the map and about 1075 feet in the north east of the map. Thus this is some evidence that tree line is affected by more than one factor: latitude, but also proximity to the Gulf Stream or perhaps rainfall. It map be (I guess) that due to these high mountains and prevailing warm westerlies, the annual rainfall falls off quite quickly from the west to the east of this map.

The demise of this forested landscape, an environmental disaster- provokes different remedies: Here it is not like the English Lakes where the “green desert” is produced by intensive sheep farming. It is said that in this landscape, deer are more important and this sporns two counterbalancing arguments: landowners see shooting and stalking as important to their economy and others even advocate wolf re-introduction. It would be interesting to know if the trigger was the Highland Clearances or if deforestation predated that era; and was any environmental problem recognised in the 1920s when this map was published?

A FEW TOPONYMIC NOTES

I notice the word “lochain” often on this map, where as “Lochan” is the more common diminutive of loch. “Tarn” might be a reasonable translation. I assumed that Lochain was a plural, but here it seems not to be so, thus “Lochain” must be the Gaelic and “Lochan” a Scots version of it.

There are lots of “Mealls” in the middle of this map between Loch Tay and Loch Rannoch. They must be large rounded hills cognate with “Mell” in the English , Mol in Welsh and perhaps with “Mam” in the West Country.

Note that “Allt” gives way to “Burn” in the south east of the map- where a mountain beck runs into the Loch through Ardeonaig. Others appear on a similar north south line and east of it. This isoglot runs slightly north west across the map from 13K to 9A- it is not exact- but does indicate, in stream names (which are always the most conservative and last to change), the comparative recent influence of Gaelic and Scots across this Highland landscape.

The Blackwater Reservoir stands out as a Scots name in a Gaelic Landscape. And it is linked to the “British Aluminium Company”. So with the new industry came toponyms in the Scots language of its engineers.

Note the Old Military Road in the far west of the map- these perhaps date from the Jacobite period and seem not to have all remained in use.

MAP CONDITION

VINTAGE- BOARDS – A CLASSIC PRE WAR 1920S SCOTS OS BOARDS- THEY FLOAT AND ARE NOT HINGED

LINEN BACKED OR PAPER?- LINEN BACK WITH A MAP SHEET IN REALLY EXCELLENT CONDITION FOR A 1920S PIECE

PIN HOLES AT JUNCTIONS OF FOLDS? A FEW

EDGE NICKS: HARDLY ANY

MAP CONDITION IS GAUGED ACCORDING TO THE FOLLOWING CATEGORIES :

AS NEW : AS GOOD AS A NEWLY PRINTED MAP

VERY GOOD: MINOR WEAR

GOOD : SCUFFING AND NICK TO COVER AN EDGES, MAP COMPLETE

ACCEPTABLE SOME DIVISIONS ON FOLD, SOME FOXING, SOME SOILING

POOR DIVISIONS, NEEDS VERY CAREFUL HANDLING-STILL USEFUL

DAMAGED AS STATED. BEING SOLD FOR SOME PARTICULAR POINT OF INTEREST

I RATE THIS MAP: ADEQUATE TO GOOD TO VERY GOOD FOR ITS 90 YEAR AGE .

I RATE THIS COVER: GOOD WITH EDGE NICKS AND WEARr

PUBLISHED BY: Director General of Ordnance Survey from: SOUTHAMPTON (Note that even Scottish Ordnance Surveys, such as this SOS sheet 55 were published from Southampton or Chessington- but not printed there)

co-ordinates:

VERY INTERESTING RARE 1920s MAP

A FASCINATING COUNTRY OF

MOUNTAINS , LOCHS, HIGHLAND RAILWAYS AND REMNANT FORESTS

EVIDENCE OF PAST MILITARY PRESENCE AND MODERN (1920S) INDUSTRIAL CHANGES TO THE LANDSCAPE

ORDNANCE SURVEY OF SCOTLAND

1859-70-1925-6-7

LINEN BACK

LOCH RANNOCH

LOCH TAY

KILLIN

SCOTTISH SURVEY No. 55

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Following notes are not essential reading for the purchase of the item- they are added for interest if wanted:

GENERAL REMARKS ABOUT VINTAGE ORDNANCE SURVEY MAPS WRITTEN BY THE SELLER

The importance of OS sheet maps is that they are a bench mark in standard, clarity and detail, and also likely to disappear- with the Ordnance Survey debating whether or not to update and continue its comprehensive paper printed maps. They are being compromised by on-line mapping and are rapidly becoming collectable in their vintage form. They are invaluable snap shots of a particular region and time and are particularly useful for the Social Historian, Etymologist, Genealogist, War, Social and Railway Historian.

The First OS Maps:

The first Trigonometrical Survey was in 1791; it began near modern Heathrow- Hounslow Heath- so Surrey, Berkshire and Middlesex must have been some of the earliest mapped regions. “In 1784 General William Roy set out the baseline of what would become the Ordnance Survey. It ran across Hounslow Heath, passing through Feltham. General Roy is commemorated by a local public house . The Ministry of Defence Geographic Centre still has a base in Feltham, used as a government mapping office”. The maps were drawn then engraved for publication. The early presses were at the Tower of London. The first plates were copper engraved- cold cut with a burin. Electrotypes came in about 1850, as the copper plates began to wear out. Colonel Mudge was the first Director. Benjamin Baker was the first Printmaker. In 1863 the sale of the maps was made more commercial; James Gardner managed this from 163 Regent Street London. The printer then was Mr Ramshaw. Railways first appeared in 1842, so it is possible to find maps or copies of them with railways before electrotyping- but generally the two phenomena came in together. Dr Harley noted that “No copy of a pre-electrotype with railways has actually been located” - so that is worth looking for. From 1882 onwards revision became more frequent as new towns, railways and features burgeoned.

RAILWAYS:

Ist Series OS showed railways on the revised electrotyped plates introduced from the 1850s onwards. Railways are un named from the 1950s onwards; before that date, the large railway companies are marked by the lines – LMSR, LNER, GWR, Southern Railway. After that date- the network is British Railways and no name is given. Pre and Post World War 2 maps give the old local railway companies, and individual line names. Series 7 is the first no not name railways.

Railway closures can, be old- several closed prior to the 2^nd World war, a few earlier in the century. The manner for mapping closed and closing railways seems to have be:

1. Open; 2. Open but not public carriage; 3.Track marked stations in White; 4. Track bed marked in dashed line, cuttings shown, stations omitted; 5. Cuttings only as geographical features.

Old Railways make a re-appearance on pathfinder 2 1/2” maps because they have become valued greenways through the landscape.

Closed stations are marked white, open stations are red. A closed series of stations does not prove a closed line which might be open for freight traffic only. War time maps may show stations closed for the duration which were re opened after the War.

Disused canals are similarly marked as disused, dry canal beds, and later just remnant bridges and surviving reaches. Unlike railways, many canal closures have been reversed.

Civilian OS tends to use red for major roads, where as Military maps tended to use ochre- a major aesthetic difference. Interestingly even on earlier maps, where all reference is in miles, the grid is not Imperial but Metric. The Kilometre square seems to be much earlier in OS mapping than in popular use. Indeed there is no popular use of the Kilometre as an English land measure- but it is possible that the survey never used anything else in the 20th century. For example on a 1959 sheet one finds a Kilometre measure, a Mile measure, a Kilometre grid but all references of distance where routes leave the map edge are in miles.

There seems to have been a big aesthetic change in the 1960 Survey when the detail of the maps was simplified and drawn in a bolder fashion- Prior to that civilian OS and Military OS were generally similar, though the griding methods were different. The Civilian Map Grid was Black not Purple or Blue. The Military field sheet-map was almost always smaller than the Civilian one, and used non-standard colours and paper.

It is said that OS add deliberate errors to maps to guard against copyright infringement-(see OS v Batholomew) and it is fun to try to spot these. War time maps exclude sites of military significance, Airbases are usually redacted but Army camps were generally not.

The following were listed in a 1908 OS cover as being the published maps of the time:

Town maps on a scale of ten feet or five feet to a mile........General Cadastral Map on a scale of 1/2500 or 25 inches to the mile...............General map on a scale of 6 inches to the mile..............General map on the scale of one mile to an inch..............General map on the scale of two miles to an Inch..............General map on the scale of four miles to an inch.............General Map of the United Kingdom 1/1000000 or 16 miles to an inch...............The 10ft, 5 ft and 6 inch maps are black only..................A full sheet is 36” X 24”, a ¼ sheet is 18” x 12”.............The 1, 4, & 10 mile maps are published in black also.............Contours are on 1 and 2 mile maps.............Special maps of certain districts are published..............All small scale maps can be had, mounted on linen, unmounted, flat, folded in covers, or cut into sections and mounted on linen.............Geographical maps are 6inch to the mile or 1 mile to an inch or 4 miles to an inch.”

ONE INCH MAPS OF THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY

The 1” Contoured Road maps has a pictorial cover, often in a brick red, with black and fawn designs with this border. The artist most seen was Ellis Martin and we worked in either pen and ink or woodblock on scenes of travellers by car or cycle. He signs EM at the bottom corner of the design. The surveys for these maps up until 1930s was often surprisingly early 1870s + , and this survey was first published in the period 1887-1891 with revisions from then into the 1930s. The format was 7” by 4 1/2” folded and the maps were often dissected, though OS used the term “Mounted in sections”. Such were the economics of the time that a price could be printed on the map cover. Integral pricing lasted until Series 7. A contoured road map of 1919 in dissected form was 3/6d. The covers were in concertina form. The grid was 2” and numbered west to east and lettered south to north. The numbers and letters named the squares of the grid not the lines of latitude or longitude. Each square was of 4 square miles. Road were unnamed and railways had their company names. The ½ inch series used an Olive Green instead of Brick Red. Ellis Martin illustrated these too- His most famous 1” design showed a weed clad cyclist studying his map with a pipe in his mouth; his 1/2” design was of an open topped Rolls Royce like car with 3 passengers and a driver

SERIES 3 1”

A map found from this series had the following interesting characteristics. Intaglio blue printing for the hydrography, intaglio brown printing for the uplands, intaglio Black line printing for the roads and towns and names, red contours like a Belgian Institute Cartographique Militaire map, which it resembled in several characteristics. It had litho printed green for woods and litho printed orange for roads. Windmills, workhouses and smithys were marked throughout , this there was an expectation (with the smithys) that horse drawn carriages would be the normal form of conveyance. Hydrography, at sea, had contours marked in feet not fathoms and a very fine coastal hydrographic shading using parallel blue engraved lines which bunched towards the coast to shade the coastal waters darker. The railweays were older companies – LBSCR in the case of the map described. It was linen backed and the sheet was about 30 inches by 20 inches between floating white linen covered boards- a most attractive but rarely seen series. (Map described was No. 137- Brighton Lewes Eastbourne).

SERIES 4, 1”

Usually this has a red brown cover, an elaborate festoon leaf border, the Royal Arms and a picture by Ellis Martin- often showing a man in Tweed Cap, pipe in mouth, and cycling gaiters studying a map on a hill with his bicycle to his right- In front of him is a generic idealised English landscape. The artist signs these 1920s covers “EM”

Series 5, 1”

Generally these have a blue cover and on them the famous Ellis Martin cover is updated to show a man more of the 1930s- the cycle is gone, as is the hat, and the Tweed jacket. He still smokes his pipe but now has a short sleeved cardigan, a shirt with sleeves rolled up and a ruck sack on his back- The cyclist has become a hiker. Otherwise the landscape of the image is unchanged, as is the rest of the cover lay out. The artist signs these 1930s covers “Ellis Martin”. Series 5 maps are often of more localised areas than Series 4. They are seldom seen and perhaps their production was quickly compromised or curtailed by the outbreak of the 2nd War.

6th SERIES 1”

6th Series Northern England and Wales maps were based on the Survey for the 4th edition; but Southern England and Wales, (South of Birmingham), were based on the 5th edition. From the 5th series on the maps were based on Lithographic plates (stone or zinc)- earlier they had been engraved. So, interestingly, Northern England and Wales 6th series is still based on an engraved master, where as 6th series Southern England and Wales maps were based on masters which were already lithographic. In this 6th series MOT road numbers were marked in red. Parish boundaries were re-established after a period of omission. The 1 kilometre National Grid is used for the first time. Work on the series began in the 1930s and was interrupted by war when all the effort of the OS went into Overseas mapping an War office sheets. Also much work was lost in bombing raids and, having been halted in an unfinished state, many of the plates had not been photographed. The maps appeared as the “New Popular Edition, 1940- 1947. I think they were much less “new” than had been intended as a result of the war damage to Chessington and Southampton and the terrible oversight in not photographing working plates. When they first appeared the prices were: paper flat 2/6d; Paper folded 3/-; Linen backed and folded 5/-; Mounted in sections on linen 10/6d. Scottish maps use the same meridian and projection for the first time- prior to this the projections and meridians were different for Scottish maps. Symbols appeared for National Trust, YHA, Wireless Masts, Pylon Lines, and Telephone Call Boxes. The only 6th series Tourist Map for which the reproduction material was not destroyed by enemy action was the Lake District. The other Tourist maps were recreated from scratch after the war. As most 6th series are published from Southampton, perhaps it was there that the Ordnance Survey lost so much in Bombing raids.

7th SERIES 1”

THESE GENERALLY APPEARED SOON BUT NOT IMMEDIATELY AFTER, THE WAR- THE 1945-47 MAPS WERE SERIES 6. Series 7 was the first truly Post War Survey- the Survey Revision work was mainly carried out 1946-1957- and the publications were initially 1952-60.

On Series Severn Maps the War time airfields are marked- usually just with the work “Airfield” an no detail. They are therefore better for War research than the contemporary Series 6 pieces. This series is particularly useful for historians of the RAF, Fighter Command, Bomber Command , USAAF, RCAF and RAAF.

There are two formats. The earlier ones, from the end of the war have a folded format of 7 ¾ inches by 5 inches, they look noticeable dumpier and thicker. The later format was 8 ¼ inches by 5 inches. The sheet sizes were standard and did not alter- the difference lay in the folding, with the 1950 era maps having the map details or legend strip at the bottom folded-in before the main map was folded. The newer format included the whole sheet in the main folds. Another age differentiator is the use of gloss covers. Generally these were later. Thus there are three instantly recognisable types for the 7th series Post War: a. Dumpy, matt cover, legend folded in. b. Larger folded size, matt cover, whole sheet folded together. c. Large folded size, gloss cover, whole sheet folded together. On 7th Series The railways were now nationalised under British Railways and so the naming of lines was not necessary anymore. Closures began but Series 7 shows the full network, even if stationed are marked white- that is- closed. It cannot be told if a line so marked was fully closed or open to freight traffic only. Britain is seen before the Motorway network. The Old fighter aerodromes are still shown. The following aesthetic changes from Series 6 can be seen: Woodland is apple green, not lime green. Urban areas are grey blocked, not black blocked. A roads are thinner, less vermilion and more crimson and their numbers are in red not black. B Roads are thinner, less ochre and more yellow and remain un named. Sand banks, bays and hydrographic features are marked in blue letters, not black. Contours are thinner and look lighter. Streams and rivers seem a little brighter blue- cobalt rather than tertiary. Orchards and plantations have a lighter and more widely spread symbol of trees in grey. Prices are no longer printed on the map legend.

7th Series ½ Inch Green Covered OS maps:

An unusual OS series.

They used classic OS cartography with a very light contour toning in three colours but also tan contour lines and colour used for land-use – not the geological colouring of the OS road maps and Bartholomew Maps. This seems to be an experimental colouring form and it may not have endured long in published OS series.

This series gives a very fine overall perspective of a region of the country.

Some detail were lost due to scale- notably orchards and plantations, minor stream names. But the hydrography generally shows up better on this broader scale.

There are aspects of the 1/2” series of the 1950s which suggests a much older template- railways were shown which would not have been on the 1” of the same period. Evidently the Green 1/2” looks back to an earlier survey- probably of the 1930s or even 1920s.

Roads maintain a standard form irrespective of scale- thus they dominate a 1/2” scale more than a 1” scale. This is a general characteristic of small scale maps.

Airports are generally absent- either due to war-time redaction which has not been reversed, or an older template which pre-dated they establishment.

There are 51 in the series with Shetland being No 1. and Kent No 51.

A standard sale price was 3/- for the paper map.

¼” 3RD EDITION FOR MOTORCYCLISTS- POCKET MAPS:

These had boarded covers-which concertina the map between them. Front cover in black and tertiary blue on fawn with classic image of a motor cyclist studying his map by a road sign, in a peaked tweed cap, goggles, a double breasted tweed jacket and a Pre-1st War machine with a camphor lamp on a bracket square tank. Boards measure 7 ½” by 4 ¼” with GR Royal Arms (George V) bottom front cover. Published from Southampton. Director General of the period cited: Colonel Commandant E M Jack CMG DSO. The map on linen cost 3/-, or Paper 2/-. The Grid is 2”; squares representing 8 miles or 64 square miles; one of the last non-metric grids published by the Ordnance Survey. All the Inter War Railways are named; Joint lines are marked as such. These are Geographical maps and show contours with graded colour much as a Bartholomew Map. The two publishers were in direct competition but Bartholomew were 1/2” to the Mile. Bartholomew covered more local regions- such as “Essex”; and Bartholomew were endorsed by the Cyclist Touring Club whose logo appeared on the map and cover. Ordnance Survey opted for the smaller scale and pitched the map at motor cyclists. They are similar to the large format blue covered 1/4” maps but have the counties names printed in bold black lettering and have grid letters down the sides, A to M and numbers across the bottom 1-15; a none standard system not the National Grid. Features marked include: Mineral Railways, Tramways, Battles, Lightships and Lighthouses and Seaplane Stations and aerodromes. These maps are often annotated by motorcyclists of the period. Numbering was as for the 1/4” 3rd Series large maps with the letter “A” added: 1A to 12A but missing out 5A. The Index Map suggests that they may not have been issued for Scotland- and also shows that Nos. 1, 3, 10, 11 (Borders, North Yorkshire, Cornwall & Devon, and the South) were not produced in this compact series. The Details state that the maps were“Heliozincographed” which is “Photo Lithographed” . “Helio” means “using light” (i.e: photographic transfer) and “zincographed” means zinc plate lithography. (“litho” means stone.) Ordnance Survey 3rd series 1/4” maps look much like Bartholomew maps: the two companies were rivals for the driver market and used similar formulae. It was a battle which Bartholomew probably won. Interesting how much sea shown on some (Isle of Man-North West England). It shows the map source was for multiple uses including flying, navigation at sea, military and it was adapted and revised for specific usage.

¼ INCH MAPS: 4TH EDITION

These are large and blue-beige covered with the Royal Arms at the top front cover. There were two series, one for Scotland and one for England and Wales. Scotland numbered 1-9 from the Borders to Shetland, and England and Wales numbered 1-12 from the Borders to SE England. Number 1 was shared between the two series and covered the whole border from Solway to Berwick. Oddly, there was no Map 5 in the English Series and so England and Wales were covered by 11 maps. Map 10- Cornwall and Devon is different from the rest in that it did not overlap any other of the series at all. Scottish maps 8 and 9 were published together (Shetland and Orkney). The size folded was a large 12 ½” x 5”. The sheets were about 33” by 27” , with the legend border folded in separately, but they varied. Some, like Shetland, were much smaller. They were printed either portrait or landscape depending on which suited the geography best. They also has a sheet of city maps inside the back cover. This town map sheet was 22” x 12”, black and red on white and printed on recto and verso. This Town Map Sheet sometimes contained other information: for example Sheet 4 shows Mersey Tunnel Charge. Typical dates were: Full Revision 1919- printed 1946 (4) so the print date equated with the 6th series 1” but the Master Revised Survey used was much earlier and must have been engraved or electrotyped- not lithographic. These maps have colour gradation to show altitude and contour, they also have road numbers; it is apparent that they were going head to head with Bartholomew for the traveller and tourist and came up with a very similar manner of map making. In War time this ¼ map is sometimes found marked by flyers- particularly, on suspects- Air Transport and Delivery pilots. These flyers ¼” maps have Level Crossings predominantly marked in red because pilots followed railway lines and used level crossings as points of reference.

Original 1940s Prices; Paper flat 3/-; Paper folded 5/-; Mounted on linen and folded 8/-; An Outline only edition 3/-.

2 ½ INCHES SERIES

The 2 ½ inch small sheets are by far the best maps for local history, archaeological study and place name study. They use black , blue and ochre, not full OS colour and will show individual buildings, trees, local names but not all field names. They are either uncovered, blue paper covered or blue glazed card covered. They measure about 18 ½ inches by 19 ½ inches and the black grids on them are 1 ½ inches or 4 cms across. They show and area of about 6 miles by 6 miles (36 square miles). The are number with 2 letters and 2 digits: such as TQ35. Each large area of the country, such as TQ is divided into 80 of these very local 2 ½ inch maps. They give Farm names but do not give Field Names.

2 ½ Inch 2nd Series (Green)

This is a transitional series between the Blue single square format and the Pathfinder double square format. The Cover graphics are as the gloss 1st series 1:25000 maps with a magnifying glass over a map. 1965 is a standard Copyright date. It anticipates Pathfinder in that the sheet is doubled longitudinally and the symbol legend is at the left. But the manner and printing quality is like the 1st series without the “satin” feel or bleached paper of the later maps. Verso is plain, footpaths are bold and green; buildings are grey and individually drawn, ancient sites are well marked, field boundaries are black: This is more rarely seen series- very pleasant maps on good paper. The standard price was 8 shillings and 6d a sheet.

Pathfinder 2 ½ INCH Maps

These were introduced circa 1980 and had a different format- They were larger, covering two of the Old 2 ½” maps: Thus, for example, the Oxford map is marked SP40/50 and covered the old maps SP40 and SP50.

Early Pathfinders had no other Letter or number codes, but soon a new numbering system accompanied the Old letter and number grid: Example: “MONTGOMERY 909 SO29/30.”

One change is the return of Imperial scales, For a time from roughly 1960 onwards these maps were described only as 1:25000, now “2 ½ inch to the Mile” makes a re appearance – perhaps by demand, because this means something; where as 1:25000 is rather abstract.

The versi were became plain, which they had not been in the Provisional 1:25000 series, and the covers became Green and Rose Pink with Black and White lettering.

Their printing differed from earlier 2 1/2” as well:

Wooded areas became block green with tree symbols in black- previously they had been white with tree symbols in a grey. Symbols for trees differentiated between Coniferous, Broad leaf, Coppice and Orchard- Orchards alone retained the white background.

The fonts changed too: Pathfinder lettering was Roman Capital, Sans Serif and Light. Older maps were Italic Capital and bold.

Field boundaries where lined bold, previously they had been light grey.

The orange contours lines were toned down and footpaths/ bridleways marked in a bolder green.

Watercourses were a lighter blue and it appears simplified with minor ponds being unmarked.

The Fold format also changed from 24cm x 12cm to 24 cm x 12.5cm: seemingly minor but giving the folded map a markedly stockier look.

The Borders were changed: previously they had been white, now they were the same pale green as the woodland with an outer border in white.

The paper turned from cream to white.

Underlying all these subtle changes was a shift in emphasis- Old 2 ½ inch were documents of record with emphases on roads, altitude and water sources, perhaps land ownership and use was uppermost in the cartographer's mind. The Pathfinder's emphasis was on walking access- this had an advantage for the mapping of railways . Previously railways which were closing or closed used to undergo a gradual disappearance ending up with vague cutting symbols in the landscape. - but on these walking maps, they became boldly displayed in white with black lined edges; they had, with cultural change, become important aspects of the countryside.

Local farm names were retained: but there appears to have been a change in the marking of tumuli and barrows which were now named but not marked with that circle of short dashes which had made then so prominent on the older series.

Overall the effect is of a higher key map with less geological emphasis and more right of way emphasis. The change from Capital Bold Italic to Light Roman Sans Serif, seemingly trivial, made a very big aesthetic difference.

Is 2 ½ inch actually the same as 1:25000?

Technically no. The maths works out as follows: 1 mile = 1760 yards, which is 5880 feet or 63360 inches. Divided by 2.5 = 1: 25,344. It would be interesting to know which is the actual scale use on the map: 1:25,000, or 1:25,344.

Geological Survey and Ordnance Survey

The relationship between the two Surveys was close. The BASE MAPS of the Geological Survey of Great Britain were always Ordnance maps, be they national or local. The definitive Great Britain Survey by the GSGB of 1948 , which was produced in 2 sheets (North and South), was 10 miles to the inch and used a grey OS base map. The Ordnance Survey retained primary copyright on these maps, not the GSGB. The Ordnance Survey published a large scale pair of sheets showing the Ancient Sites of Britain to accompany the Geological Survey- same format, also North and South, numbered 1 & 2, and using a grey-blue map base with orographic colour in ochre shades. These maps were very professionally produced with robust linen backs and were roughly 40 inches by 32 inches- as were the two sheet Geological Survey maps. The image on th covers of the two Great Britain Geological Survey maps of 1948 was very much in the manner of Ellis Martin but was signed “RTR” at bottom right: It showed a similar idealised English landscape with two geologists at work with hammer and map.

A characteristic of the accompanying 1951 Ancient Britain sheets was their conservatism- perhaps including only sites verified and surveyed by themselves- Piltdown was one unfortunate inclusion.

War Maps:

These maps were printed by the Geographical Section of the General Staff and published from the War Office- They have a different grid system to civilian maps – generally using purple lines and a reference system of vertical and horizontal numbers- East is read first then North. The western edge of the square giving the East Co-ordinate and the south edge of the square gives the North Co-ordinate.

Interestingly these Military bearings conform neither to True North nor to Grid North. On many of these maps, MILITARY details are often printed under the map- on some, letters subdivide the chart. Some look cut down but it can be seen that they were issued margin-less because the square coordinates are printed as a cross across the middle of the map.

The General scale for the local Military maps of the 2^nd War is 1 mile to the inch. They are in full OS colour, but due to the many scratch printers used, the colour is non-standard and the paper quality is War Standard Smaller scale general maps are often found with air navigators' hand written marks- They must have been used by Air Transport Corps.

The OS survey details are often given- original surveys usually being as early as 1865-78 and first publication often about 1876-82- then constantly revised until these War Time printings by the War Office Geographical Service.

One tends to find, when dated, that the GSGS OS maps with purple grid are 1930s surveys printed in War Revision 1940 and the GSGS Blue Grid are often 1940-42 prints of War Revision 1940.

There is considerable difference in colour on OS War maps. generally the older and linen backed tend to use deeper lithographic colour and the paper and later maps tend towards muted lithographic colour. Also Tidal land is ochre on the former and often grey stippled on the latter. The blues of the Fresh water and tidal water show the greatest difference between the series , being quite intense and ultramarine on some (earlier)- more tertiary on others (later).

Military Maps have no covers, but are folded sheets-linen backed or paper and - often with a pencil reference on the verso. Often those that were used in the field had the edges folded back. A few were varnished- seemingly with cellulose- this was done to paper maps without linen backing. The standard size of the War Chart without margins is roughly 27 inches by 19 inches.

ADMIRALTY 1” OS -Seventh Series:

These are uncommon, use a cover more or less indistinguishable from Civilian Ordnance Survey, but their linen backing is more robust and the printing details give the civilian publication date, normal reprint dates and then: “PRINTED BY THE HYDROGRAPHER OF THE NAVY” and then a date. These are coastal charts and were no doubt used for inshore water duties, maybe boat rescue, Air-Sea Rescue, fisheries maybe Coastguards. They mark fathoms and lightships. Co operation between Admiralty Charts and Ordnance Survey was longstanding and sometimes cited: see notes of Jersey Maps. An interesting hydrographic detail is the marking of the 5 minute grid with a cross. The main grid is National Grid and is set from Point 0 south west of Lands End. But there is also a grid in degrees north and east-west of Greenwich marked with a light cross- the grid has 5' squares (five minutes: a minute being a 60th of a degree). this "true longitude latitude grid" is also marked on land but is difficult to see- it becomes a major feature of the hydrography. On land this cross might be confused with a symbol for a site of antiquity or a church without a spire: but it is longer and lighter than those symbols.

ORDNANCE SURVEY FOR SCOTLAND.

In some series this is treated as a different survey with different lettering and numbering systems. On War Maps this is the case (1” small sheet, blue, purple grid) and when a map crosses the Border- for example the sheet “ Solway-Gretna-Longtown”- it has two numbers, one for the Scottish Survey and one for the English and Welsh Survey. However, how much the two Surveys were ever independent is a debatable point and will be noticed that the Ordnance Survey of Scotland Maps are published by the Director General from either Chessington Surrey or Southampton , Hampshire. The covers on Vintage OS maps were different; the English and Welsh Surveys showed the Royal Arms not the English Arms, the Scottish Survey showed the Lion Rampant, not the Quartered Arms of the Monarch in Scotland, which would have been the Lion Rampant 1st and 3rd, Three Lions 2nd and Harp 4th with the supporters of the Scottish Arms; the implication might be that the Ordnance Survey of England and Wales was under Royal Patronage, where as that of Scotland was not. From Series 7 onwards Scottish OS maps used the same hinged cover system as English OS maps- prior to that series Scottish maps had a concertina cover system.

JERSEY

The 1914 Jersey Survey produced a non-standard 2 inch to the mile map which used contours and a tan shading to display the geology of the island. It referred back to 1900-01. The covers were pictorial showing a scene from the Island. Prehistoric sites and old forts were shown and the Jersey Railway was an important feature of the eastern side of the island. The map was corrected in later years with reference to the Admiralty charts and this, plus the manner of printing and presentations- suggests that it was always envisaged as an aid to sailors and as a map for visitors. The rocks of the Jersey coast and the marine lights were recorded in a manner reminiscent of the detail of a marine chart. The map was folded and had hinged covers, and a smaller format when closed.

THE NATIONAL GRID.

The START POINT is a little to the south west of Lands End and then all the points in England and Wales (later Scotland) are pin pointed in reference to east and north of this point. This point "0" then forms the default position for a grid of 10 km squares drawn parallel to a North South line through it The eastings are then given followed by the northings to pin point any place. a 4 letter reference gives you a point within 100metres. a 6 letter reference give a point within a metre. On a very local map you can scrap the 100s of kilometre number- and give just 3 numbers 356- 532 for example : square 35.6 east and square 53.2 north. Of course you cannot portray a globe accurately in this way and so the distortions by the time you are in say Berwick, Cromer or Shetland are quite considerable. This must have been the logic behind Scotland having its own perspective point and grid which seems to have ceased in series 6. It seems logical that eastings would distort more than northings; a northern line from Start Point 0 is correct irrespective of its length- though “true north” is an abstract concept on a globe which wobbles in its yearly orbit. The National Grid shows that cartography is an art of convenience, not a science.

Tourist Maps-

These are perhaps the most attractive of the OS series combining orographic colour and contour- the early ones were intaglio and the series was substantially lost in the 2nd World War due to Bombing Damage. The Lake District map was the only one which survived as a master.

The Post war lithographic maps were 1” and the orographic colour is quite different from that of Bartholomew- more high key, brighter. The mapping is “hybrid”, having relief colour, contour and shading- they tended to be large 41” by 33 inches and the covers were particularly attractive in the early 19th century with period graphics evoking the age. The covers of the 1960s were a little bland and perhaps did not do justice to the excellent maps within which aspired to the condition of art as well as documents of information.

The tourist series of the 1960s covered these titles: BEN NEVIS AND GLEN COE, CAINGORMS, DARTMOOR, EXMOOR, GREATER LONDON, LAKE DISTRICT, LOCH LOMOND AND THE TROSSACHS, NEW FOREST, NORTH YORK MOORS, PEAK DISTRICT, SNOWDONIA.

The multi plate coloured intaglio printing of the Early 20th century Tourist series represents perhaps the most interesting an attractive of all Ordnance Survey maps.

FOLDING OS MAPS:

The standard way is: Fold horizontally, Concertina laterally, Fold in half. (If the lower information border is separately folded, that is done first.) Scottish OS maps used a concertina system, as did Bartholomew of Edinburgh. Often the front and back boards of a concertina-folded map were not on the same horizontal line of folds. The OS motorcycle maps concertina as well. The advantage of the Scottish system was that one did not get hinge wear on the cover. The disadvantage of the Scottish system was that there is no spine with map details readable from a library shelf. SCOTTISH OS MAPS USED THE HINGED SYSTEM FROM SERIES 7 ONWARDS

GENERIC ORDNANCE SURVEY COVER BY ENDYMION MAPS:

This cover is used by the seller if the old covers are beyond usage and the map is of sufficient interest to merit restoration:

This cover is blue with a tertiary label on which is printed the Royal Arms, the Ellis Martin OS map-cover image from the 1920s-1930s of a man, a cyclist, studying a map, and other printed lettering. The specific details of this map are added by hand in India ink and pen to this label. This cover was devised to preserve particularly interesting and important OS maps whose original covers invariably become beyond use where as the map within is in good condition. The cover is fixed to the map sheet exactly as was the original. The design attempts to incorporate some aspects of OS Series 4, 5, 6 and 7.

WHEN USED, THE ORIGINAL COVER, WORN BEYOND USAGE, IS PRESERVED AND PASSED ON TO THE SELLER WITH THE MAP, FOR RECORD AND INTEREST.

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