- Title: Reconnoissance of the Passes of the Delta of the Mississippi Louisiana
- Author: A. D. Bache
- Date: 1852
- Medium: Engraving
- Condition: Very Good - age toning, wear and discoloration along fold lines, trimmed margins
- Inches: 20 3/4 x 13 1/4 [Image]
- Centimeters: 52.71 x 33.66 [Image]
- Product ID: 318049
H No. 3
U. S. Coast Survey
A. D. Bache Superintendent
Reconnoissance of the Passes
of
The Delta of the Mississippi
Louisiana
showing the changes since 1839
by the party under the command of
Lieut. B. F. Sands U.S. Navy & Asst. U.S. Coast Survey
Published in 1852
Scale 1/60000
Map depicting the delta of the Mississippi River in several detailed insets. Map also features data concerning currents, tides, and winds, as well as instructions for sailors.
Surveyor, scientist, and pioneering oceanographer A. D. Bache (1806-1867) served as the 6th Superintendent of the U.S. Coast Survey. Born in Philadelphia, he came from a prominent political family, and was the great-grandson of Benjamin Franklin. Under his leadership, the Coast Survey’s operations grew significantly, expanding from nine to seventeen states as it surveyed the Gulf and West Coasts. Bache ran meticulous studies relating to ocean currents, tides, and the earth’s magnetic field, endeavors which provided in-depth knowledge about U.S. coastal geography. Thanks to Bache, the Coast Survey evolved into an immense resource for the U.S. government and one of the foremost scientific institutions in the country leading up to the Civil War.