Mapping the Nation: History and Cartography in Nineteenth‐Century AmericaSusanSchulten. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2012.

Abstract

Mapping the Nation: History and Cartography in Nineteenth-Century America Susan Schulten. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2012.Susan Schulten's Mapping the Nation: History and Cartography in Nineteenth-Century America is a compelling work devoted to exploring the evolution of thought process pertaining to map functionality, the critical role thematic mapping played in the nation's early development, and the advancement of cartography during this time period. In elegant fashion, this book manages to take a subject often targeted at historians and cartographers, and present its content in a manner that scholars and students of various disciplines may find appealing.Upon first glance, the title and cover jacket do an effective job of alluring the reader's curiosity while hinting at the type of information one hopes to encounter in a book about maps. The pages are sufficiently strewed with a rich array of illustrations that include detailed inline citations. Unfortunately, none of the images within the text is in color, which would have been a welcome addition to the sections specifically discussing strategic implementation of color in maps. Despite this omission, the reader is provided online access to high resolution, full color images for all included illustrations via the book's accompanying website.Mapping the Nation begins with a look into when and how Americans began using maps, and includes a detailed assessment of the extent to which Americans relied on maps and geographical knowledge to form a sense of national identity. Schulten argues that the process of garnering appreciation for old maps in early nine tee nth-century America was a particularly arduous task due in large part to most Americans casting them off as an arcane province of antiquarians (5). However, in meticulously presenting evidence to defend her claims, Schulten demonstrates that by the persistent efforts of early American educator and cartographic pioneers, the adoption, creation, utilization, and preservation of maps began to finally take hold around the mid-nineteenth century. Of particular importance is her mentioning that during the 1850s Congress ultimately conceded the value of these resources by approving funding efforts to copy maps associated with American history. Schulte n's inclusion of this detail serves as an interesting, if not ironic, backdrop to the rest of the book as she formulates a convincing argument for the considerable information advantages maps would eventually contribute to the nation and its leaders at critical junctures.Schulten argues that the nineteenth-century proliferation of thematic maps, which are maps designed to visually identify specific correlations for the purpose of enhanced information dissemination and analysis, represents a fundamental shift in thinking during this time period. …