March 25, 1861
On the eve of the Civil War, few detailed maps existed of areas in which fighting was likely to occur. Uniform, large-scale topographic maps, such as those produced today by the U.S. Geological Survey, did not exist and would not become a reality for another generation.
In the Eastern theater (i.e., southern Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia) both Union and Confederate military authorities initially relied on several maps: Fielding Lucas, Jr.'s Map of Maryland (scale 5 ½ miles to 1 inch) published in Baltimore in 1852; and the nine-sheet map of Virginia by Herman Böÿe (scale 5 miles to 1 inch), revised by Ludwig von Buchholtz and published in Richmond in 1859. Each was actually a revision of a map published long before the Civil War: the map of Maryland was first issued by Lucas in 1841; and the map of Virginia was first copyrighted by the state in 1826 and offered for sale in 1827.
The most detailed maps available in the 1850s were of selected counties. Published at about the scale of one inch to a mile, these commercially produced wall maps showed roads, railroads, towns and villages, rivers and streams, mills, forges, taverns, dwellings, and the names of residents such as Issac Bond’s Map of Frederick County, Md. accurately drawn from correct instrumental surveys of all the county. The few maps of selected counties in Virginia, Maryland, and southern Pennsylvania that were available were eagerly sought by military commanders on both sides.
Lucas, Fielding. Map of the State of Maryland. Constructed from the best authorities by Fielding Lucas, Jr. Engraved by John Warr. Baltimore, . map, 90 x 129 cm.
Catalog record: http://lccn.loc.gov/2002624038
Böÿe, Herman. A map of the state of Virginia, constructed in conformity to law from the late surveys authorized by the legislature and other original and authentic documents / by Herman Böÿe, 1825. [Virginia : s.n., 1859] ([Washington, D.C. : Selmar Siebert and Co.]) 1 map on 2 sheets : hand col., sectioned and mounted on cloth ; 155 x 240 cm., sheets 82 x 240 cm.
Catalog record: http://lccn.loc.gov/99439988
Bond, Isaac. Map of Frederick County, Md. accurately drawn from correct instrumental surveys of all the county roads, & by Issac Bond C.E. Lithographed by E. Sachse & Co. [Baltimore?], c1858. 1 map, hand col., 111 x 86 cm. (Copy 2)
Catalog record: http://lccn.loc.gov/2002624018
Stephenson, Richard. Civil War maps : an annotated list of maps and atlases in the Library of Congress / compiled by Richard W. Stephenson. Washington: Library of Congress, 1989.
Catalog record: http://lccn.loc.gov/88600031