|
||
|
|
|
|
This vivid geological map of California was prepared by the State Mining Bureau under the direction of State Mineralogist Fletcher Hamilton and geologist James Perrin Smith. Originally issued in 1916 and reprinted in 1929, it represents the culmination of decades of stratigraphic observation, mining surveys, and regional mapping. The scale, breadth, and detail make it one of the most important statewide geological representations published in the early 20th century.
The map presents the full span of California from Oregon to Baja California and the Pacific islands to the east-facing Nevada line, with a vibrant geological palette that distinguishes dozens of stratigraphic units from the Quaternary through Pre-Cambrian. Each formation is keyed to a printed legend, divided by both system and lithology, including major sedimentary, metamorphic, and igneous groups.
Geographical annotations include county boundaries, railroads, and early highway networks, as well as oil fields, mining districts, and water features. Particular attention is given to known oil and gas basins, many of which were the focus of intensive speculation and development in the years surrounding the map’s production. In Southern California, the San Diego backcountry is heavily marked in pink and pale blue, representing expansive granitic and plutonic outcrops and associated metamorphic belts, while coastal formations from Orange to Santa Barbara counties show alternating Tertiary sediments and volcanic sequences.
![[ First Account of California ] Memoire Touchant l'etat des Missions Nouvellement etablies dans la Californie... [in:] Lettres edifiantes et curieuses, ecrites des missions Etrangeres. Nouvelle Edition. Memoires d'Amerique. Tome Huitieme [with map:] Passage par Terre a la Californie Recouvert par le Rev. Pere Eusebe-Francois Kino, Jesuite depuis 1698 jusqu'a 1701](https://storage.googleapis.com/raremaps/img/small/110455.jpg)
![[ Salinas Rodeo -- True First State ] Sweetheart of the Rodeo](https://storage.googleapis.com/raremaps/img/small/108509.jpg)
![[Pebble Beach] Amended Map of Pebble Beach Monterey County California A Subdivision of A Portion of Rancho El Pescadero Owned By Pacific Improvement Co. Designed & Surveyed By T.B. Huner . . . October, 1909. Showing Portion Resubdivided By Lott D. Norton, October](https://storage.googleapis.com/raremaps/img/small/22893.jpg)
