1875 County Map of Colorado, Wyoming, Dakota, Montana
DESCRIPTION
This is an unique and scarce antique map pf the northern plains at a time when the railroads were opening up the region to new settlement. The map was published by Samuel Augustus Mitchell Jr. out of Philadelphia in 1875.
This detailed map provides a good topographical picture of the region, with the rivers & mountains depicted, as are the locations of the Plains Indian tribes, which played and important, yet tragic, role in the opening of the West. This map also well represents the development of this region, picturing towns, forts, roads, and trails. Of particular interest is the depiction of the railroads, such as the Union Pacific, completed a few years before this map was published.
Completed in 1869, the transcontinental railroad ran across the center of the area shown here. The railroads facilitated the movement of emigrants through and into this area, already begun by the emigration to Oregon, the California Gold Rush, and Pike's Peak Gold Rush. This led to the creation of new states and territories such as, Colorado, Dakota, Montana, and the recently created Wyoming (1869).
This map is an updated version of Mitchell's map of the northern plains, which is shifted slightly to the northwest, leaving off Kansas, which appeared in the earlier version. The reason for that was the establishment of the Yellowstone National Park in 1872.
CONDITION
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