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Mapping a Growing Nation: From Independence to Statehood
On September 3, 1783, American and British representatives signed the Treaty of Paris that formally concluded the American Revolution and recognized the United States as an independent nation. In March 1784, only six months later, Abel Buell (1742–1822), an engraver from Connecticut, produced his New and Correct Map of the United States of North America,which, among other things, has been recognized as the very first map of the newly independent United States to be compiled, printed, and published in America by an American. Additionally, the 1784 publication is the first map to be copyrighted in the United States, registered under the auspices of the Connecticut State Assembly.
Abel Buell's map documents a unique time in U.S. history when the social and political fabric binding the former British colonies was very fragile. Until the adoption of the Constitution in 1787, the federal government could not establish internal boundaries between the states nor force the surrender or sale of western lands claimed by some of the states under their original charters. As a result, many of the state boundaries on the 1784 map extend west from the Atlantic Coast to the Mississippi River; the western boundaries of Pennsylvania and Virginia are not formally established; and, the final boundaries for the state of Connecticut had not been resolved.
The original thirteen colonies, for all intents and purposes, became the original thirteen states with the signing of the Treaty of Paris. The exact order of statehood for the thirteen states, however, was determined by the date each state ratified the Constitution. The system of transitioning from colony to state and, later, from territory to statehood was formalized by the Northwest Ordinance, which was passed by Congress on July 13, 1787. Under the Ordinance, an area of land could be established as a territory when its population reached 5,000 free males. Slavery was prohibited in the new territories. A territory was eligible to apply for statehood when the population reached 60,000. This system remained in place through the admittance of the last two states, Alaska and Hawaii.
Accompanying Buell's landmark work in this rotating exhibition are early maps of each state -- often the very first map -- printed in the United States after each state achieved statehood. The maps represent five geographical regions, and while space allows for only one region to be displayed at a time, early maps of all of the fifty states can be found in the accompanying online exhibition at www.loc.gov/exhibits. |