An activist government agency, a map

What a map it was.

Many thanks to Patsy for sending this story.

In the 1800's the United States Coast Survey, now part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, was the official keeper of technology, scientific knowledge and map making for the US Government. Their official responsibilities included accurate map making of all US rivers and coastal waters, but occasionally the curiosity of the department head crept in and official maps veered in tangents never intended.

The 1860 US census was the last to include slaves. Inventing new display techniques, and using the new census data the Coast Survey created a map in 1861 illustrating the number of slaves by county. Shading was used to illuminate the number of slaves. The darker the shading the greater the number.


From a propaganda standpoint the map couldn't have been better. With a quick glance a Northerner could discern the order of states secession(the more slaves, the sooner gone). A more careful reading would show a field commander where pockets of Union solidarity lie in the South. On a more personal level, mid Missouri calls itself "Little Dixie". I never understood why until I saw the map.

This map was Lincoln's favorite and is included, bottom right, in the official painting of "Lincoln Reading the Emancipation Proclamation to his Cabinet" by Francis Carpenter.

For other map geeks the NOAA collection of maps are available electronically here.

Toad

More Escape Maps: part 2 For Sale!!!!!!!

Just this once, because he's a good guy, I am putting on my sales hat.

I received an email from regular reader Seth saying he has a stash of 13 silk escape maps he no longer needs, and is interested in selling. Knowing my interest he offered them to me, but I have all I need. So I am passing his offer on to you. The set of 13 is available for the steal price of $300, or individual maps are $35 apiece. Natch, I have no financial interest in either side of Seth's sale.

The double sided set includes:

Stalingrad 4th/Stepnoy 5th- 1952 23”x22”

Tehran 3rd/Bushire 4th- 1951 24”x25”

Moskova 3rd/ Ivanovo 4th- 1952 24 1/2”x19”

Murmansk/Tromso- 1958 26”x31”

Stockhold-Riga 3rd/Oslo Stockholm 2nd- 1953 x2

Bangkok 1st/Saigon 1st - 1957 26”x40”

Burma South/Burma Extreme South- No Date 44D and C 24”x37”

Amsterdam- Hamburg- Berlin- Warszawa/Vil’Nyus- Minsk- 1952 26 1/2”x37”

Helsinki 3rd/ Torndheim 3rd- 1953 24”x41”

Al Jauf 5th/Beyrouth- Beyrouth- Damas- 1st- 1951 23”x29”

Kabul 1st/SamarQand 1958 26”x27 1/2”

Libya Aeronautical Chart- 40”x30”

Get in touch directly with Seth at Seth dot Thompson 25 at gmail dot com.

The maps are great jacket linings, wall hangings, or just an intriguing piece of history.

Toad

More Escape Maps

Scroll 3/4 down to see Monopoly sites today

Once upon a time I wrote about escape maps, maps on cloth used by the military to assist flight crews escape in the event of an unscheduled landing or aid POW's find their way to safety. I have a small collection of them, occasionally using one as lining inside a sport coat.


A buddy gave me a very odd magazine. If you live in or around the Upper Peninsula of Michigan you may be familiar with UP Magazine Monthly Humor Tabloid. An acquired taste, filled with local humor and horror stories, a must read if you plan on visiting the area. The issue in my hands told Paul Harvey style the "rest of the story" of escape maps.

Beginning in 1941 the Royal Air Force, needed a means to help fliers locate safe houses or, if captured to facillitate their escape. A map was the best solution, but paper wore out rapidly, is useless when wet, and makes noise when handled. MI-5 had the brilliant idea of printed silk.

At the time, only John Waddington, Ltd. had the technology to make such maps. Waddington was also the UK licensee for the game Monopoly, and as luck would have it, games and pastimes qualified as items included in "care packages" delivered by the International Red Cross to POW's.

Under incredible secrecy, Waddington mass produced escape maps keyed to each region where POW camps were known to be. The maps were folded so tightly they fit inside Monopoly game pieces. Repackaged by Waddington, games included playing pieces with a small magnetic compass, a 2 part metal file that screwed together, and useful amounts of authentic German or Italian currency hidden in the piles of Monopoly money.

Of the 35,000 Allied POW's in Europe who escaped, it is estimated 1/3 were aided by a rigged Monopoly game. In case they had to use this trick in future wars, the story wasn't declassified until 2007.

Toad

Silk Maps

Boys save the darndest things. I have always loved maps, and globes. The older the better. Heaven on earth for me was finding a very old map, with country names that will never exist again.

During the cold war that meant finding pre-war maps that included the Baltics, or colonial maps of Africa. I'm still searching garage sales in hopes of finding a British globe on a large library stand from about 1890.

One of the great map inventions of the 20th century was made by the Royal Air Force near the beginning of WWII. The silk map. It was little, light,did not disintegrate in water and contained a great deal of information useful to a downed pilot.



The U.S. Army Air Corps "borrowed" and expanded on the idea to include silk maps all the war theatres. The photos below are of my favorites, from my modest collection, covering the air routes from The Philippines to Japan.

During my Air Force days, warehouses of these maps existed, and they were there for the taking. Mostly war surplus, but new ones were still being printed. Many Air Corps veterans used them, after the war, as linings in old flight jackets, or odd their favorite hunting coat.

The military sold surplus tons of them to the likes of Banana Republic to provide an authentic military look to their clothing.

I have enough silk maps to make a lining, and have the coat I would want to try it on, but somehow it feels disrespectful. Kind of like wearing decorations you didn't earn.

Should you find any old maps in the attic,let me know. I'd be happy to take them off your hands.

Toad