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Description

Presented by the Mapmaker to the President of Honduras

Finely executed map of Honduras, published by Abram Cutler and J.W. Gallup, and assisted by Dr. R. Fritzgaertner, who at the time was serving as the Government Geologist for Honduras and had recently served as Honduras's General Commissioner at the New Orleans World's Fair (World Cotton Centennial) in 1884-85.  It is likely that this map was produced by Abram Cutler and J.W. Gallup from information brought to the America by Fritzgaertner during the fair.

The map is colored by departments, and includes topographical information, wagon roads, trails railroads, rivers, lakes, towns, etc.  A large inset map at the top right corner focuses on the shipping routes and distances from points on the Gulf Coast and Cuba.

The map was prepared at at time when metallurgical investments in Honduras were of great interest in the United States and Europe, including gold, platinum, silver, copper, iron, tin and other metals.  In a number of articles during this period in American and European Newspapers, it was also noted that mining activities were not taxed in Hondruas, and that "the Government [of Honduras] is so anxious to encourage industry that it will render all assistance in its power for the transportation of machinery, and will free it from export duties."  Glasgow Herald, October 6, 1882.

Includes the following inscription:

To his Excellency General Don Luis Bogran, President of Honduras |  Respectfully presented by his ??? friend & Servt. Dr. R. Fritzgaertner

Kansan Abram Cutler was the chief engineer of a projected railroad in Honduras from Truxillo to Puerto Cortez.  In 1884 and 1885, his name appears in a number of newspapers in Kansas and Missouri, where he was attempting to raise capital for the railroad.  Prior to this period, he seems to have been in the mining business in the Ouray, Colorado area between about 1877 and 1881.  According to a letter in the August 29, 1891, Lawrence Journal from his wife, Cutler apparently died in Honduras in 1891.

We were unable to find any significant information regarding J.W. Gallup.

Note on the map states:

Copies of this Map can be obtained by applying to Charles Hedges, General Agent, Galveston, Texas, or Rand, McNally & Co., Chicago.

 

Luis Bogran

Luis Bográn Barahona (1849 – 1895) served two consecutive terms as President of Honduras from November 30, 1883 to November 30, 1891.  He was a member of a prominent and wealthy political family. The last name "Bográn" derives from the French surname "Beaugrand". Luis Bográn was half-brother and first cousin of future president Francisco Bográn and first cousin of future president Miguel Paz Barahona.

Rarity

OCLC locates a single copy (Harvard).  The Library of Congress also holds a copy.

Rand McNally & Company Biography

Rand McNally & Co. is a large American map and navigation company best known for its annual atlases. The company got its start in 1856, when William Rand opened a print shop in Chicago. He was joined in 1858 by a new employee, Andrew McNally. Together, the men established their namesake company in 1868. Originally, the company was intended to print the tickets and timetables for the trains running to and through Chicago; their first railway guide was published in 1869.

By 1870, they had shifted from just printing to publishing directories, travel guides, and newspapers. Their first map appeared in 1872 in a railway guide. The map was produced using a new wax engraving method, a cheaper process that gave the company an edge.

By 1880 Rand McNally had entered the education market with globes, wall maps, and geography texts for students. In 1923, Rand McNally published the first Goode’s World Atlas, named after its editor, Dr. J. Paul Goode. For generations afterward, this would be the standard classroom atlas.

In 1899, William Rand left the company, but McNally and his family remained, controlling the company for over a century. In 1904, they published their first road map intended for automobiles and by 1907 were publishing Photo-Auto Guides, which combined photography and mapping to help drivers. In 1924, they produced the Auto Chum, a precursor to their famous road atlases. Rand McNally would remain the leader in road maps and atlases throughout the twentieth century.

In 1937, Rand McNally opened its first store in New York City. Ever on the frontier of technology, Rand McNally pioneered the scribing process for printing tickets in 1958 and printed their first full-color road atlas in 1960. Arthur Robinson developed his now-famous projection of Rand McNally in 1969. By the 1980s, the company was exploring digital reproduction and digital databases of maps for truckers. In the 1990s, they lead the charge to develop trip-planning software and websites. Today, most of its products are available online or in a digital format, including maps for tablets and phones.