{"id":13035,"date":"2025-05-21T11:07:43","date_gmt":"2025-05-21T16:07:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/?p=13035"},"modified":"2026-04-02T08:55:27","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T13:55:27","slug":"proposed-distribution-for-a-general-atlas-of-the-united-states-1874","status":"publish","type":"map","link":"https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/map\/proposed-distribution-for-a-general-atlas-of-the-united-states-1874\/","title":{"rendered":"Proposed Distribution for a General Atlas of the United States (1874)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-ugb-container ugb-container ugb-31d465b ugb-container--v2 ugb-container--design-plain ugb-main-block\"><style>.ugb-31d465b-wrapper > .ugb-container__side{align-items:center !important}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-31d465b-content-wrapper.ugb-container__content-wrapper{width:75% !important}.ugb-31d465b.ugb-container{padding-left:60px !important}}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-31d465b > .ugb-inner-block > .ugb-block-content > *{padding-top:0px !important;padding-bottom:0px !important}}<\/style><div class=\"ugb-inner-block\"><div class=\"ugb-block-content\"><div class=\"ugb-container__wrapper ugb-31d465b-wrapper\"><div class=\"ugb-container__side\"><div class=\"ugb-container__content-wrapper ugb-31d465b-content-wrapper\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-ugb-container ugb-container ugb-9406a1f ugb-container--v2 ugb-container--design-plain ugb-main-block\"><style>@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-9406a1f > .ugb-inner-block > .ugb-block-content > *{padding-bottom:0px !important}}<\/style><div class=\"ugb-inner-block\"><div class=\"ugb-block-content\"><div class=\"ugb-container__wrapper ugb-9406a1f-wrapper\"><div class=\"ugb-container__side\"><div class=\"ugb-container__content-wrapper ugb-9406a1f-content-wrapper\"><div class=\"paragraph-widget paragraph-widget--text-html\">\n\t<div class=\"text-content\">\n\t\t<h4>This map, produced by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers under Capt. George M. Wheeler, outlines the proposed grid and sheet numbering for a comprehensive General Atlas of the United States. It delineates a coordinate-based tiling system to be used for future topographic and geological survey maps. The shaded region highlights areas already covered or in progress by government surveys, notably in the western U.S. where exploration was a priority during this period. The map reflects a strategic push to standardize national cartographic coverage.<\/h4>\n\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2160\" height=\"1525\" src=\"https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/files\/2025\/05\/USA-1881-Topographic-Plan.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12844\" style=\"width:450px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/files\/2025\/05\/USA-1881-Topographic-Plan.png 2160w, https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/files\/2025\/05\/USA-1881-Topographic-Plan-300x212.png 300w, https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/files\/2025\/05\/USA-1881-Topographic-Plan-1024x723.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/files\/2025\/05\/USA-1881-Topographic-Plan-768x542.png 768w, https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/files\/2025\/05\/USA-1881-Topographic-Plan-1536x1084.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/files\/2025\/05\/USA-1881-Topographic-Plan-2048x1446.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2160px) 100vw, 2160px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n<div class=\"paragraph-widget paragraph-widget--text-html\">\n\t<div class=\"text-content\">\n\t\t<p>Right-click image file to save.<\/p>\n<h4>Source:<\/h4>\n<p>Wheeler, Capt. George M. 1874. <em data-start=\"865\" data-end=\"954\">Sketch Showing Proposed Distribution of Sheets for a General Atlas of the United States<\/em>. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Geographical Surveys West of the 100th Meridian.<\/p>\n<h4>Resolution:<\/h4>\n<p>Lithographic print on paper, grid-based with numeric sheet identifiers; approximate scale 1:7,000,000. Not a topographic map but a planning and reference framework for future survey work.<\/p>\n<h4>Suggested Use:<\/h4>\n<p>Essential for historians of U.S. cartography, federal land surveys, and western expansion. Useful for understanding the development of the U.S. Geological Survey and the early infrastructure of federal mapping projects.<\/p>\n<h4>References<\/h4>\n<p>Wheeler, G.M. 1874. <em data-start=\"1523\" data-end=\"1603\">Annual Report upon the Geographical Surveys West of the One Hundredth Meridian<\/em>.<br data-start=\"1604\" data-end=\"1607\">Ristow, W.W. 1985. <em data-start=\"1626\" data-end=\"1705\">American Maps and Mapmakers: Commercial Cartography in the Nineteenth Century<\/em>.<br data-start=\"1706\" data-end=\"1709\">U.S. Geological Survey Archives.<br data-start=\"1741\" data-end=\"1744\">Harley, J.B. &amp; Woodward, D. 1987. <em data-start=\"1778\" data-end=\"1816\">The History of Cartography, Volume 2<\/em>. University of Chicago Press.<\/p>\n\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":12844,"parent":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0},"categories":[400,1],"tags":[],"location":[401],"surface-characteristic":[],"class_list":["post-13035","map","type-map","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-historical-usa","category-uncategorized","location-usa"],"acf":[],"featured_image_urls_v2":{"full":["https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/files\/2025\/05\/USA-1881-Topographic-Plan.png",2160,1525,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/files\/2025\/05\/USA-1881-Topographic-Plan-150x150.png",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/files\/2025\/05\/USA-1881-Topographic-Plan-300x212.png",300,212,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/files\/2025\/05\/USA-1881-Topographic-Plan-768x542.png",768,542,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/files\/2025\/05\/USA-1881-Topographic-Plan-1024x723.png",1024,723,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/files\/2025\/05\/USA-1881-Topographic-Plan-1536x1084.png",1536,1084,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/files\/2025\/05\/USA-1881-Topographic-Plan-2048x1446.png",2048,1446,true]},"post_excerpt_stackable_v2":"<p>This map, produced by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers under Capt. George M. Wheeler, outlines the proposed grid and sheet numbering for a comprehensive General Atlas of the United States. It delineates a coordinate-based tiling system to be used for future topographic and geological survey maps. The shaded region highlights areas already covered or in progress by government surveys, notably in the western U.S. where exploration was a priority during this period. The map reflects a strategic push to standardize national cartographic coverage. Right-click image file to save. Source: Wheeler, Capt. George M. 1874. Sketch Showing Proposed Distribution of&hellip;<\/p>\n","category_list_v2":"<a href=\"https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/category\/historical-usa\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Historical USA<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/category\/uncategorized\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Uncategorized<\/a>","author_info_v2":{"name":"","url":""},"comments_num_v2":"0 comments","yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Proposed Distribution for a General Atlas of the United States (1874) - Geospatial Laboratory for Soil Informatics<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.agron.iastate.edu\/glsi\/map\/proposed-distribution-for-a-general-atlas-of-the-united-states-1874\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Proposed Distribution for a General Atlas of the United States (1874) - 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