1852

Original Antique Mitchell Maps № 16-18

№ 16: Mexico, Central America & West Indies

№ 17: The Isthmus Nicaragua 

№ 18: The Isthmus of Tehuantepec

The Isthmus' of Tehuantepec, Nicaragua and Panama have been considered favorable routes to transport goods from the Atlantic to Pacific Oceans since the early 16th century. Inter-oceanic canals where rejected since construction would have been too costly. A number proposals were raised consisting of a combinations of railways, short canals and the use of rivers and/of lakes.

№ 16 is an overview of the entire region including the railway built by businessman William Henry Aspinwall over the Isthmus of Panama.  The project, which began in May 1850 and was later known as the Panama Canal Railway, was the first transcontinental railroad in the Americas and was built to provide a shorter and more secure path between the United States' East and West Coasts. When completed in 1855, the line was designated as an "inter-oceanic" railroad crossing as it connected Aspinwall (Colón) on the Atlantic and Panama City on the Pacific Ocean.

№ 17: The Nicaragua route is divided into two segments connecting Lake Nicaragua. The West Canal from the Pacific crosses the Isthmus of Rivas at Brito, a segment of about 26 km. One lock system is expected to be built midway along this segment. Then across Lake Nicaragua for 107 km.; then along the San Juan River to San Juan del Norte on the Pacific coast.

 № 18: The Tehuantepec Route represents the shortest distance between the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific Ocean. Before the opening of the Panama Canal, it was a major overland transport route starting at the Gulf of Mexico near Minatitlan, Vera Cruz to Da Ventosa, Oaxaca, Mexico on the Pacific Ocean

This map was taken from

Mitchell's School Atlas

Designed to Accompany Mitchell's School and Family Geography

Published by

Thomas, Cowperthwait & Co.

1853

Samuel Augustus Mitchell (1792-1868) was the most prolific American map publisher of the 19th Century. Originally a school teacher, his frustration with the poor quality of educational maps led him to form his own mapmaking business. In 1830, he purchased the plates and rights to Anthony Finley's New American Atlas (1826) and hired J. H. Young, Finley's chief engraver, to improve and update the plates. He acquired the copyright for Henry S. Tanner's New Universal Atlas (1836) in 1845, and extended the life of the copperplates by having the images transferred to lithographic stone for printing. Mitchell was also a pioneer in the use of steel engraving, employing the technique in the early 1830s, almost 20 years before the general switch to steel was approximately 1850. Mitchell retired in 1860, turning the business over to his son Samuel Augustus Mitchell, Jr. The firm prospered until the 1890s.

James H. Young (1817-66) was an Irish-American cartographer, draftsman and engraver who played a leading role in the creation of 19th Century American maps and atlases. Based in Philadelphia, he was at various times associated with Anthony Finley, Charles Varle, William Kneass, George Delleker, and Samuel Augustus Mitchell, amongst others. His best-known work were the maps for Finley and later Mitchell's New American Atlas. While arguably the finest map engraver in America of his day, he was far more than an artisan, but also a knowledgeable and discerning editor of sources, and a designer of maps. Walter Ristow asserted that "Young was the [S.A. Mitchell] company's principal compiler and draftsman as well as chief engraver from 1830" until the 1860s. 

Thomas, Cowperthwait & Co.

 An American publishing company based in Philadelphia. They were part of the flowering of American atlas and map publishing in the early to mid-nineteenth century. Originally a school publisher, they expanded to sell many geographic materials and published many famous works.

Atlas cover and title page shown in the photos are not part of the sale

but are for documentation of the maps origin only.