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HOWELL, Reading (surveyor) / PHILLIPS, James (printer) [Philadelphia: Reading Howell: 1792 [but ca. 1794] A MAP OF THE STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA, BY READING HOWELL, MDCCXCII. Engraving on four sheets, 37 x 63 inches if joined. Lightly cleaned, minor mends, and some vertical folds from storage, yet overall a superb example. In the period immediately after the Revolution, there was little available currency in the new country but substantial debts to soldiers who fought in the war. Thus, Pennsylvania like other states looked to its vast land holdings to address these problems by land sales and the promotion of settlement. In order to do, the western part of the state in particular required accurate mapping. The result can be seen in this, the finest 18th-century map of Pennsylvania, which was the work of the premier surveyor working in the state at the time. It represents a significant advance on earlier maps—the Nicholas Scull map of Pennsylvania of 1759 and the William Scull map of 1770--not only for its more detailed mapping of eastern Pennsylvania, but also for the extensive coverage, from the latest sources, of the western part of the state. Also, Howell’s map’s larger scale allowed for much greater detail. These improvements are best described in the author’s own words, engraved on the map: “A Map of the State of Pennsylvania…. including the Triangle lately purchased of Congress, and containing the Boundary Lines of the State, as run by the respective Commissioners, with part of Lake Erie, and Presque’Isle. Also, by actual Survey the Rivers Susquehanna, its North-east and West Branches, Tyoga, Sinnemahoning, Juaniatta, Lehigh, Lexawacsein, Schuylkill, and the western Rivers Ohio, Allegeny, Conewango, part of the Chataughque Lake, and French Creek, agreeably to the late Discoveries, Monaungehela, Yoxhiogenia, and Kiskemanetas, and the larger Creeks, and most of the lesser Streams, Mountains, the old principal Roads, with the many new ones in the northern and western parts of the State, and the Portages and communications from the late Surveys by order of Government. The Divisions, Lines of the respective Counties and Townships, Delineation of the Districts of Depreciation and Donation Lands, with all the other Districts in the new Purchase. The Seats of Justice in the respective Counties, Iron works, Manufactories, Minerals, and other noted Places.” Howell’s map was six years in the making; he announced his plans for it in March 1787: “Studious application, and considerable practice for the state, as well as individuals, has enabled him to make a large collection; from which he is compiling, and has in forwardness, a MAP of PENNSYLVANIA, to be laid down, principally, from actual survey, which, from the materials now in his possession, and those in prospect, flatters himself, that his Map will be rendered much more useful than any yet published” (Pennsylvania Herald, March 17, 1787, p. 1) By November of that year, his plans were sufficiently advanced to make a general appeal for subscribers, issuing a broadsheet announcement to that effect. The price to subscribers would be the hefty sum of $2.67—roughly equivalent to $82 dollars today. Over the following years Howell would continue to collect fresh surveys as well as to personally conduct new surveys as required. Additionally, he was able to more accurately fix the locations of notable places based on astronomical observations by Rittenhouse and Ellicott. The state of Pennsylvania at last agreed to provide funding for the map in an act of March 27, 1790 and agreed to pay Howell 300 pounds. This was hardly a princely sum, given the scale of the undertaking compared with other state sponsored maps; moreover, a balance of £100 recorded as still unpaid in September 1791. When the drafting was complete, Howell went through the considerable difficulty of contracting with the London bookseller and publisher James Phillips to engrave and print the map, even though Philadelphia was the home of some fine engravers. In a letter to Phillips dated October 1, 1792, Howell acknowledged receipt of 320 sets of the map in sheets and sufficient paper to print another 600 sets. Howell first advertised the map for sale in December 1792, but issued this lengthier advertisement in January 1793: “To the Citizens of Pennsylvania. THE SUBSCRIBER Has now the pleasure of presenting to you, and the World at Large, His MAP of the STATE. THE constant labour of six years. During which time, he exerted his abilities, sparing neither money nor labour, in bringing it to its present perfection. Not having the assistance of a preceding map founded on authentic documents, he was obliged to compleat it from detached surveys, collected, from the one to the other extreme of the state, at a heavy expence. Yet sundry parts of the Map remain blank, for want of Materials, which he intends completing as they can be procured. He nevertheless presumes that it is as correct, for the same extent of country, if not more so, than any Map that has heretofore been produced, even in the old countries. This however he is willing to submit to their impartial judgment…. Having completed the map, for a time Howell corrected the individual plates on an ad hoc basis. However, from about 1794 he began to extensively revise the map, with new printings advertised in February 1794 (“both large and small revised Emissions”, July 1794, January 1795, 1796 (“Third Emission”), 1806 (copyright line now dated 1806), 1809 (advertisement matching new undated additions) and 1811 (date in title). In the first phase of publication, through 1794 the plates were haphazardly revised; and, in keeping with the publishing habits of the day, sets were rather randomly assembled at point of sale, so very few extant sets from this first phase are uniform. Following Wheat & Brun’s rather confusing classification, it appears that the present example was assembled in or around 1794. It was only in 1795 and 1796 Howell oversaw a uniform revision of the four plates. Reading Howell (1743-1827) saw service in the Revolutionary War. After his discharge he worked as a surveyor in Philadelphia. During the war he reached the rank of Major in the U.S. Army but was later referred to as quartermaster of the Second Regiment, Hunterdon County Militia. In 1787, he was described as former Deputy-Quarter-Master-General when he was tasked by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania with settling the claims of Pennsylvanians against the United States. In 1785 the Commonwealth commissioned him to survey the Delaware River to establish state ownership of the various islands and to identify navigation hazards in the river. From about 1787 to 1794, he was preoccupied with creating this map, though in 1790 the State appointed him “one of the Surveyors for the inland Navigation and Roads of Communication within the State.” Once this map was completed, Howell announced two further projects--a wall map of the United States, registered for copyright February, 26, 1794, and a map of Philadelphia County, registered for copyright, March 5, 1794) Although both maps were heavily advertised in the Philadelphia papers, neither came to fruition. Howell continued to work as a surveyor, while updating the four-sheet map, until about 1810, when he sold the copyright to two partnerships, “Kimber & Conrad” (Emmor Kimber and Solomon White Conrad) and “Jacob & Warner” (Jacob Johnson and Benjamin Warner), who also co-operated on a globe project and American editions of Arrowsmith’s wall maps. He may well have retreated to farming about this time, when he would have been about 67. He died in 1827 at his farm in Bucks County.
One of the great state maps published in the early years of the Republic, “the best map of Pennsylvania to appear in the 18th century, and the first detailed map of the state to show its exact boundaries” (Wheat and Brun). An exceptionally fine example of a map rarely seen on the market.
Phillips, List of Maps of America in the Library of Congress, p. 679; Reps, American Maps and Mapmakers, pp. 108-110. Rumsey Map Collection, #4181. Wheat & Brun, Maps and Charts Published in America before 1800, #432-436 for the early states; 440, 441 & 453 for the later editions.
Price: $19,500.00