Sent from my Torpedo 18b
From the 1930s to the 1970s, the road map market was dominated by maps given out for free by gas stations and state/provincial governments. I've always preferred the officially released government maps, partly due to the fact that while oil companies produced an identical series of maps for each area covered with cartography by the same company, each state and province created its own maps and cartographic styles are much more varied.
For your enjoyment, here are some of my favorite official state/provincial road maps that I've gotten this year, in chronological order.
Those are some neat looking maps. I like '38 Oregon the best!
ReplyDeleteI was pretty excited when I first discovered the 1938 Oregon—when I say "discovered", I mean it, because unlike typewriters, there were so many variations of maps that there aren't galleries of all the cover variations for most states!
DeleteWonderful graphics on these maps.
ReplyDeleteHave you ever tried using one of these maps today, to see just how much roads have changed?
The changes have been so dramatic that you would probably get hopelessly lost! Even disregarding interestate highways, there have been enough new roads opened, old roads closed, re-alignments, and re-numberings to render a 1930s map useless for travel.
DeleteJust a couple hours before your comment I was thinking about scanning in a specific section on many maps over the years and making a gif showing the gradual changes in the road system in a metropolitan area.
That would be cool. A time lapse in maps!
DeleteAbout the typewriters, well, interests come and go. Sometimes one gets the upper hand, and sometimes the other. That's just life I guess. :-) You'll be "back" soon enough.
I've started on the project and it's going to be a pretty daunting one, though definitely worth it. I have scanned in over 70 maps (that was quite an evening) and now the hardest part is resizing them all to match in scale.
DeleteAmazing, your dedication will be rewarded!
DeleteI'm very curious to see the result.
The roadmaps are beautiful - works of art in their own right!
ReplyDeleteI already miss you and your posts, but have been so busy myself, so I understand.
Have fun traveling, and check in when you can!
I guess I should subscribe to Etcetera, to see what you're doing.
Gotta love art when it's applied to a practical purpose!
DeleteDon't worry, I'm not going away. In fact I already have two posts planned for next week.
Old maps are wonderful. It brings back memories when things were done better than today where everthing has to be about cheap quality and a lot of money. Best thing all those old maps were not only better illustrated than the garbage out there today, they were also free!
ReplyDeleteDon't worry about posts. I too, have trouble finding interesting things to write when I do not have a new to me typewriter or a repair to post. I truly enjoy all your typewriter reviews, but they take a huge amount of time. Post what you can when you can. i"m sure it will be enjoyable to read.
I like the AAA maps, especially those of the 60's and 70's and even earlier, where I can see what my home town looked like when our family first moved there in the late 1940's. Some are beginning to come apart at the folds from repeated use, and include scribbled notes of swimming holes, camping spots, and scenic dirt roads, and are kept in plastic bags more as revered treasures than for real use.
ReplyDelete