Item #16000054 W. D./ DODGE ALEXANDER, F. S.

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Breathtaking, Richly Colored Wall Map of Maui
[Washington, DC, 1885/ 1903]



Maui.  ALEXANDER, W. D./ DODGE, F. S.  [Washington, DC: 1885/ 1903]  Hawaiian Government Survey.  W. D. Alexsander Surveyor-General. Maui Hawaiian Islands…  43 ¼ x 54 inches.  Lithograph with bright water colors.  Folding map here expertly flattened and mounted on acid-free paper and linen; a few minor mends at folds else a superb example.                                                                                                               
This magnificent map provided the first scientific survey of Maui as well as the first map of the island commissioned by the U.S. Government following Hawaii’s annexation by the United States in 1898.   The map essentially prepared the island for orderly settlement and economic exploitation at this transitional moment in its history.  It provided a thorough assessment of its resources and depiction of its topography, the latter indicating which lands would be best for which crops.  It established the borders of existing plantations and delineated land grants, settlement tracts, and, significantly, lands available for purchase.  It clearly distinguishes between public and privately held lands.  It further shows schools and post offices as well as several towns-- Lahaina, Makena, Kihei (spelled Kehei), Hana, and Kihului among them.  Not surprisingly, the map would not be surpassed for a number of decades.  Although originally published in 1885, this edition was updated by John M. Donn in 1903 for inclusion in a 1906 report on the Hawaiian Islands prepared for the U. S. Department of the Interior.  


The map was the result of exacting trigonometric surveys led by a remarkable figure in Hawaiian history, William De Witt (1833-1913), a Yale-educated, Hawaiian native, who was also an important historian, teacher and writer.  After an early career as a teacher, he rose to Surveyor-General of the Territory of Hawaii and to prominent political positions.

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