Sign In

An Early Official Map of the Province of British Columbia -- Annotated In An Early Hand To Show Towns & Post Offices

Highly detailed large format map of British Columbia, compiled and drawn by Gotfred Jörgensen, under the direction of George Martin, the Commissioner of Lands and Works.

First published in 1895, Gotfred Jörgensen's map was the first major update to the maps produced by the Department of Lands and Works in the mid-1880s, and a substantial enlargement and improvement on the earlier works. Published in Victoria by Montreal, Sabiston Lith & Pub. Co., it became the largest and most highly detailed map of the Province published during the 19th Century.

The map extends from Vancouver and the southern part of Alaska in the west to Alberta, identifying a number of Districts, including Kootenay District (East and West Division), Yalke District (with Yale Division, Kamloops Division and Osoyoos Division), New Westminster District, Lillooet District, Coast District, Cariboo District, and Cassiar District. Vancouver Island is also divided into Districts (Rupert District, Sayward District, Nootka District, Clayoquot District, Barcay District and Rentfray District.

The map shows the extend of the Canadian Government Township Surveys, with relatively little land surveyed and mostly concentrated in the south and west. Early railroad, trails and roads are shown, along with Land Recording Offices, Mining Recording Offices, Post Offices, Telegraph Offices, Indian Villages, Mining Camps, Mining Settlements and Important Road Stations, Missions, Hudson Bay Company Posts, etc.

On July 20, 1871, that British Columbia became the sixth province to join Canada. In return for entering Confederation, Canada absorbed B.C.'s massive debt, and promised to build a railway from Montreal to the Pacific Coast within 10 years, ending a period in which the residents also considered joining the United States or remaining a British Colony. The last spike of the Canadian Pacific Railway was driven in Craigellachie in 1885.

Annotations

The present example of the map is meticulously annotated, adding several hundred place names, most in blue pen, with a few in pencil, likely recording the location of towns and  post offices throughout the province.

Early Government Mapping of British Columbia

Most of the early maps of the Province of British Columbia were produced by the Department of Lands and Works, beginning about 1884. The Department was established in 1871, in order to survey and administer the province.

Gotfred Jorgensen produced several maps in this time period, including Sectional map of the northern portion of Vancouver Island (1893) ; Map of Portion of Osoyoos District: British Columbia (1893) ; Map of Victoria British Columbia showing subdivisions on official record up to 1893 (1893) ; Sketch map of the southern portion of British Columbia indicating chief means of communications; and Map of the South-eastern Districts of Vancouver Island (1905)

Rarity

The map is very rare. We were only able to locate the copied in the Bancroft Library, University of British Columbia, Vancouver Public Library and the Bibliotheque Nationale de France. We note that a map with the same title and size, dated 1905, was offered for sale in 1966 in a Dora Rideout Hood Catalog in 1966 ($25.00).

This is the third example we have handled in 25 years, with prior examples going to Yale and a private American collection.