William Scull, Map of the Province of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia: James Nevil, 1770

This is a facsimile rendering of a 1770 map of Pennsylvania created by cartographer William Scull for the brothers Penn, Thomas, Richard and John. The map was commissioned by the Penns to ensure that the borders of their province were properly documented, as well as to detail the settled parts of the province itself. Scull was chosen for not only his acumen as a surveyor, but also due to his family connections. In 1759, before William’s appointment, his grandfather Nicholas Scull was commissioned by the Penns to create a map of similar purpose. Using his grandfather’s map, as well as his own successful 1769 surveys of Lancaster, Cumberland, Northampton and Berks Counties, Scull created a map widely recognized by the Penns and the general public as the work of a capable map maker.

The facsimile, shown due to the deteriorating condition of the original, depicts a Pennsylvania not dissimilar to the state as it appears today. It includes Berks, Bucks, Chester, Cumberland, Lancaster, Northampton, Philadelphia and York Counties, as well as Fort Pitt, the site of present-day Pittsburgh. The original Philadelphia city grid is clearly displayed along the Delaware River, as well as the improved roads that existed to aid travel in between counties. The western, sparsely populated area on the map not only depict settlements, but also notes the presence of coal in the Allegheny Mountains, foreshadowing the growth of the mining industry in western Pennsylvania. The bottom left of the map contains a caption referencing the disputed boundary between Pennsylvania and Virginia. According to Scull, Pennsylvania actually extended fifty miles to the south of the border shown on the map, into disputed territory, that would have placed the boundary line in what was then Virginia, but is now the present-day West Virginia.

John Melish, Map of Philadelphia County, Philadelphia: John Melish, 1819

In 1816, the legislature of the state of Pennsylvania commissioned a map of the county of Philadelphia. Scottish-American cartographer John Melish, then a Philadelphia resident, was selected to produce the map. While maps of the city had been published since its earliest days, Melish’s map, published in 1819, depicts Philadelphia County before the 1854 Act of Consolidation, which incorporated the surrounding townships into the city limits. Many of the townships identified on the Melish map would retain their names when incorporated into the city. Philadelphia residents would be quick to recognize Germantown, Northern Liberties, Passyunk, Roxborough and Byberry as some of the more well known Philadelphia neighborhoods featured on the map.

Like much of Melish’s other work, the map is brilliantly colored, highlighting the outlines between the townships. He included many roadways that would be recognizable today, including Old York Road, Germantown Avenue and Ridge Pike, which he commended as being “Generally Excellent.” The table in the bottom right hand corner of the map describes the area of each portion of the county and includes information on population, soil quality and geographic features. Melish even notes the presence of four post offices within the county, and their proximity to the city itself. The table reflects the utilitarian nature of the map itself as Melish included space on the table for updated population figures.

Thomas Holme, Portraiture of the city of Philadelphia in the province of Pennsylvania in America, London: Andrew Sowle, 1683

In the early 1680’s, William Penn sought to have Philadelphia surveyed for the purpose of dividing the land in the city for quick sale and profit. To this end Penn hired Thomas Holme, who, in 1683, produced A Portraiture of the City of Philadelphia in the Province of Pennsylvania in America. Unlike the other maps thus far in the exhibit, Holme’s work was never intended to be a navigation aid, or to display routes taken across country; on it you will not find latitude or longitude markings, just a simple, unlabeled compass rose to orient the document. The work was strictly a commercial document meant to aid in Penn’s sale of property within the city. Luckily for both Holme and Penn, Philadelphia was the first city in the United States to have a town plan prior to construction, and the resulting map is a very orderly grid, showing the numbered lots for sale within city limits. The map was translated into several different languages and sent to potential investors, and proved to be one of Penn’s most successful promotional tools. He included it in a letter to the Free Society of Traders, a Quaker group that had made large financial contributions to his efforts to establish the colony, in hopes that they would settle in his new city.

William Wilson Pollard and Albert Cook Myers, Philadelphia as Wm Penn Knew It, Philadelphia: unknown, 1932.

While this map was printed in 1932, commemorating the 250th anniversary of William Penn’s arrival in America, it depicts Philadelphia as it was in 1684. Similar to the Holme map of 1683 described above, the printing shows the city’s early grid system, but it also shows the outline of the modern (1932) waterfront, including Delaware Avenue. Unlike the Holme map, this print lacks numbered lots in favor of blank spaces for unclaimed parcels of land, while including the names of the landowners on their estates. The map shows the plot of land where the American Philosophical Society Library now sits fell under the ownership of Jas. Price, Richard Cook and John Lloyd.

The map also displays the original street names of the east-to- west oriented streets. Cedar St. (now Lombard St.), High St. (now Market St.), Mulberry St. (now Arch St.) and Sassafras St., misspelled on the map as Sasafras (now Race St.), are all shown with their original names. Dock Creek, now completely underground, is shown running as far north as High St. and as far west as Fifth St. Interestingly, the print also reflects the success of the Holme map as a marketing tool. A (relatively) large section of South Philadelphia, from Front St. to Fifth St. between Spruce and Pine, is shown in the possession of the Free Society of Traders, a Quaker group, and one of William Penn’s largest investors. The landowners here were among the many persuaded to settle in Philadelphia by Penn’s letter containing the Holme map of 1683. In present-day Philadelphia, this area makes up a large part of the Society Hill neighborhood, named for its association with the Free Society of Traders.