Browse Items (32 total)

“An Act to Authorize the People of the Missouri Territory to Form a Constitution and State Government, and for the Admission of Such State into the Union on an Equal Footing with the Original States, and to Prohibit Slavery in Certain Territories.” A…

The mapmakers place an outsize emphasis on rivers in their map design. Rivers are represented with solid black lines. The inclusion of even minor rivers means that a network of rivers seems to cover the map. In cases where state boundaries and rivers…

At first, the mountains appear to be a relatively unimportant feature of the map, and it is true that they occupy relatively little physical space on the page. The mountains that are represented are done so in a way that connects them in continuous…

One of the things I noticed in exploring this map is that although state boundary lines are almost indiscernible, state and territory place names hold an outsize importance in the visual hierarchy. The text for state and territory names is in an…

This layer contains a wash of three distinct colors: bright red for free states, dark blue-gray for slave states, and green for territories that were, as the map’s title calls it, “open to slavery or freedom by the repeal of the Missouri Compromise”…

Containing areas of settlement, this layer is fascinating because when isolated, it more clearly suggests purposes behind the accumulated locations. These reasons may include aesthetic preferences or for strategic (military or for trade) uses.

Containing small illustrations of creatures, this layer is interesting because it reflects another type of commodity for use as a trade resource: fur. Here we see bears, foxes, beavers, etc. To me, it can also depict a level of artistic play that the…

Containing patches of trees to represent forests, this layer is interesting because it shows potential areas to be navigated around, used as possible protection, or used to acquire building resources. As depicted in the multi-perspectival…