The Most Iconic and Important American Map of the 19th Century

It is no overstatement to characterize John Melish's 1816 Map of the United States as the groundbreaking and influential work in American cartography to date. Melish's map was the first to definitively show the United States extending from the Atlantic to the Pacific, effectively visualizing the concept of Manifest Destiny before it became a widespread ideology. The map was so influential that it played a role in boundary disputes and treaties throughout much of the 19th century, making it one of the most important and influential maps of America published in that era.