Beschreibung:

Rare and Monumental Map of "Louisiana from Darby's Map, Published at Philadelphia 1816" by William Darby (American, 1775-1854), hand-colored engraving, published by Aaron Arrowsmith, Hydrographer to the Prince of Wales, London, January 3, 1817. Unframed. plate 27-3/4" x 39-1/2", sheet 28-1/2" x 40-1/4" Provenance: Private collection of Hugo Wedemeyer, New Orleans, Louisiana. Notes: "I have no doubt whatever that Mr. Darby's Map of Louisiana is more correct than any which has been published of that country. He has certainly taken extraordinary pains to acquire correct information; and as far as my opportunities have enabled me to judge I am induced to think his delineations correct." --Andrew Jackson speaking before U.S. Congress, Senate on his use of Darby's (then) unpublished map of Louisiana that he relied on during and after the defense of New Orleans in the 1815 battle. At the outbreak of the War of 1812, Darby had already completed his map of Louisiana proper after nearly eight years of surveying the state, and promptly offered his map and services to General Jackson, serving as his topographical advisor. Jackson's comments on the accuracy of Darby's map have weathered time, as there are few major differences between his map and modern day ones-the most significant being the growth in Parishes from 25 to 64. After the war Darby completed his map, adding his expedition on the Sabine River and explorations of the Mississippi territory and Alabama, and presented it to John Melish in Philadelphia, the premier publisher at the time. Regrettably, Darby did not properly secure copyrights on his map, and Melish incorporated it into his own map of the United States without crediting him, and received most of the recognition for it. It was not until a few weeks before his death in 1854 that Darby received a nominal remuneration from Congress for his work. In an attempt to reclaim his work, Darby immediately published an improved second edition through James Olmstead and Benjamin Levy in New York and New Orleans just months after the Melish one with the inclusion of ten additional counties, changes to Lafourche Parish, the course of the Alabama river and Choctaw boundary lines. In his preface to the new edition, Darby reiterates the singularity of his work: "The State of Louisiana south of Red river, and west of the meridian of Natchitoches, has never been surveyed except by myself…The whole work is from original document…I am the only man who ever did attempt and execute a survey of the Sabine." As Darby's declarative prose demonstrate, what makes his map so incredibly important is the detail with which it was executed. What Adrien Persac achieved, in terms of cartographic history and demography, in his epic map of the plantations along the lower Mississippi River, Darby also achieved in terms of the topography, hydrography and demography of the state and gulf coast as General Jackson poignantly attested. Before Darby's map, little had been accurately charted outside the twelve original counties and the rivers in the southeast; almost all of southwest Louisiana was a vast space of "terra incognita" that crafty publishers filled in with large cartouches. Darby's map not only surveyed all the parish boundaries, but also all the major roads, settlements, rivers, bayous, and soundings. The United Kingdom, in recognition of the map's great historical importance, which played a contributing role in the British defeat in the Battle of New Orleans, published a copy of Darby's second edition (with proper acknowledgement) shortly after Olmstead and Levy produced it, making this map, the third state to be issued. All states are extremely scarce and valuable, as only a handful of have ever come to auction in the last 30 years. Reference: Gomez, Gary. "Describing Louisiana: The Contribution of William Darby". Louisiana History: The Journal of the Louisiana Historical Association. 34:1 (1993). pp 87-105.