Mapping Maryland

Contact Us
Maryland Historical Society
Library of Maryland History
201 W. Monument Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
Phone: 410-685-3750
Fax: 410-385-2105
E-mail: library @mdhs.org

Introduction
Maryland, colony and state, features prominently in the history of America's mapping. One of the earlier colonized regions, it has appeared on maps (in varying degrees of detail) for over 350 years. At first, interest was focused mainly on the Chesapeake Bay area, but when the colonized area expanded to the west, so did maps.

Over the centuries the function of maps and the nature of the information provided by them changed also. The earliest maps served the specific needs of explorers: names of Indian tribes, possible locations of passages to the Pacific Ocean and information about wild animals. The colonists of the 17th and 18th centuries were especially interested in the location of roads, mountains and boundaries. The users of maps during the Industrial Revolution referred to them to learn, in addition, the location of mills, mines, furnaces and forges.

Mapping Maryland traces the visual depiction of Maryland from its pre-colonial times through the mid-nineteenth century.
 
 

Start Tour:
Room 1: Early Prototypes	Room 2: Chesapeake Bay
Room 3: Maryland's Counties and Neighbors	Room 4: The Mapping of Baltimore

References

Website Credits