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Research Work of California's First Great Map Historian

A unique and exceptional object, illustrating the work of George Davidson, one of the great American cartographic minds of the 19th Century, attempting a scientific recreation of three of the most important and earliest recorded Spanish Voyages on the West Coast of North America.

The base chart is a thick paper separately issued chart of Central California, between Morro Bay and Monterey Bay, compiled by the US Coast & Geodetic Survey.

This example of the chart is extensively annotated by George Davidson, and was once part of his collection of maps acquired by the Bancroft Library early in the 20th Century.  "[George] Davidson was for many years connected with the United States Coast Survey and is considered the leading authority on the early explorations of the Pacific Coast." (McArthur I, page 371).  He served as President of the Geographical Society of the Pacific and published numerous papers on the history of the Pacific Coast.  "The list of early navigators who touched on the coast and whose charts and narratives [Davidson] indefatigably searched out is a long one, including Cabrillo (1542), Cermeno (1595), Vizcaino (1602) and numerous other early Spanish and Portuguese explorers . . ." (Lewis, p.108). 

Davidson's Reconstruction of The Points Located by Juan Cabrillo, Sebastian Vizcaino and Allesandro Malaspina Using His Own Modern Scientific Methods

In the annotations on this chart, Davidson undertakes a methodical look at the points registered by the three explorers along the Central California coastline.  Utilizing the contemporary journals and written accounts of the three expeditions, Davidson meticulously applies his modern observations to record the locations of key points on the various voyages.  His work would later become the subject of a published paper on this topic.

As noted by Davidson in the introduction to his 1886 An Examination of Some of the Early Voyages of Discovery and Exploration on the Northwest Coast of America, From 1539 to 1603 (US Coast & Geodetic Survey, Methods and Results . . . . Appendix No 7), page 150, 

During my work on the Pacific coast of the United States since the spring of 1850, I became deeply interested in the discoveries and explorations of the early Spanish navigators who had followed the coast from Cape San Lucas to Alaska. Part of my duty consisted in the determination of the latitude and longitude of the headlands, islands, rocks, harbors, rivers, &c., and in the geographical reconnaissance of the shores from the Mexican boundary to the forty-ninth parallel. While in command of the surveying brig R. H. Fauntleroy, I entered (in addition to my regular duties) upon the self-imposed task of writing a Coast Pilot for California, Oregon, and Washington Territory . . . . Very naturally, my early interest in the old explorations became intensified, and I made many special examinations of the narratives and their application to supposed localities. I think I have been able to reconcile many of the discrepancies of the old Spanish, English, American, and French navigators. Their inaccuracies arose principally from "constant" errors of their instruments, ignorance of the coast currents, errors of judgment in estimating distances, &c.  Among the Spanish discoverers, the meagerness of detailed descriptions, a failure to seize the salient points for the determining of their positions, the want of minute accuracy in most of their plans—sometimes giving weight to general features and sometimes to details without distinction—and a leaning to exaggerate certain discoveries and to completely overlook others, have much involved the locating of many of their landfalls, headlands, mountains, and streams. . . . I cannot withhold my admiration for the indomitable courage and perseverance of the old Spanish navigators, who, in small, ill-conditioned, and ill-supplied vessels, with crews nearly destroyed by scurvy, fought their way to the wildest parts of the Alaskan coast almost regardless of season. "There were giants in the earth in those days."

The records of such of these voyages as are published are too short to be of much more value than isolated statements of what was done; and the inaccuracy of the observations for the determination of the geographical positions has led many to judge that all were touched with the spirit of Maldonado, de Fonte, and de Fuca. But with the present knowledge of our coast it is possible to locate Ulloa; to track Cabrillo and Ferrelo in their discoveries in mid-winter; to place Drake under Cape Ferrelo and Point Reyes, and to fix with certainty the most of Vizcaino's positions. Later than 1603, I have not undertaken identification in this paper, except to incidentally mention Father Taraval's visit to Point Eugenio, and his landing upon Natividad and Cerros . . . .

Map Details

The chart provides a detailed scientific mapping of the coastline between Morro Bay and Monterey Bay, expanding on earlier regional charts covering the area in lesser details.   

Davidson Recreates The Expedition

The map includes two sets of annotations, both almost certainly in the hands of George Davidson, one in pencil, one in pen.

While unsigned, the hand is identical to a chart we offered for sale which was signed by Davidson, with annotations in the same hand.

Rarity

A unique and exceptional object, illustrating the work of one of the great cartographic minds of the 19th Century attempting a scientific recreation of three of the earliest and most important Spanish Voyages on the West Coast of North America.