Map of routes for a Pacific railroad

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Map of routes for a Pacific railroad

Item Information

Title:
Map of routes for a Pacific railroad
Description:
Sectional interest in controlling the West was particularly evident in the Pacific Railroad Surveys, conducted from 1853-54 under the direction of then Secretary of War, Jefferson Davis. Four east-west traverses, designed to satisfy both northern and southern sectional interests, were surveyed in order to determine the most practical route for the first trans-continental railroad. The potential routes were delineated on a “hurried“ map prepared by Lt. G.K. Warren in 1855, shortly after the surveys were completed. Although none of the four routes was selected in its entirety, the first trans-continental railroad followed a mid-continental route connecting Omaha and San Francisco. Begun during the war, this rail line was not completed until 1869, four years after the war ended.
Creator:
Warren, G. K. (Gouverneur Kemble), 1830-1882
Name on Item:
compiled to accompany the report of the Hon. Jefferson Davis, Sec. of War in Office of P. R. R. Surveys ; G.K. Warren.
Date:
1855
Format:
Maps/Atlases
Location:
Boston Public Library
Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center
Collection (local):
Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center Collection
Subjects:
Railroads--West (U.S.)--Maps
Pacific railroads--Explorations and surveys--Maps
West (U.S.)--Maps
Places:
Western United States (area)
Extent:
1 map : hand col. ; 52 x 57 cm.
Terms of Use:
No known copyright restrictions.
No known restrictions on use.
Publisher:
[Washington, D.C.] : Office of P. R. R. Surveys
Scale:
Scale [ca. 1:6,000,000]
Language:
English
Notes:
Relief shown by hachures and spot heights.
Appears in the U.S. War Dept.'s Report of the Secretary of War on the several Pacific railroad explorations, 1855.
"This map is a hurried compilation of all the authentic surveys and is designed to exhibit the relations of the different routes to each other. An elaborate map on scale of 1:3,000,000 is being compiled and is in an advanced state."
Notes (exhibitions):
Exhibited: "Torn in Two: The 150th Anniversary of the Civil War" organized by the Norman B. Leventhal Map Center at the Boston Public Library, 2011.
Identifier:
06_01_006555
Call #:
G4051.P3 1855 .W37
Barcode:
39999059026516
LCCN:
2007626788