5. The Cartography of Commerce

Revised 4/06/01

During the nineteenth century Long Island gradually became more prosperous and heavily populated. The growth of wealth and population created a market for many types of maps. The development of new printing processes, such as lithography, made possible the inexpensive production of attractive maps to meet this demand. Many of these maps show the growth of roads and railroads. Property maps, which show individual houses and give the names of their owners were particularly popular during this period.

J. Chace, Map of Suffolk County,1858.
Detail showing area near Southampton.
(Courtesy State University of New York at Stony Brook.)

F.W. Beers, Atlas of Long Island, New York, 1873.
Plate showing plan for community of Sea Cliff Grove.
(Courtesy of the State University of New York at Stony Brook.)

Fowler and Bulger, Hempstead, N.Y., Long Island, 1876.
Bird's-eye view.
(Courtesy of Long Island Studies Institute, Hofstra University.)

Hyde and Company, Map of Long Island, 1896.
Detail of area near Port Jefferson.
(Courtesy of the State University of New York at Stony Brook.)

1906 E. Belcher Hyde Atlas of Long Island
(This site includes a complete property atlas of Long Island. Click on the index map to view area you are interested in. Courtesy of Newsday.)

1873 Beers Atlas of Long Island
(This site includes readable images of most of the 1873 Beers Atlas of Long Island, as well as other property maps of New York City and Long Island.)

Next Chapter

Return to Table of Contents