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Press Release -
"Beers" Atlases of Vermont Reissued on CD
For Immediate Release Oct 1,
2006 |
Old Vermont Road Atlases
Issued on CDROM
The
remarkable 1870s “Beers” atlases of Vermont, with
beautifully rendered maps of every town, are now available
on CDs which can be read by home computers. David Allen of
West Chesterfield, NH, scanned each of the 11 atlases
and one map during the summer of 2006 and has just completed
publishing the scans in convenient PDF format. These
reproductions of old town and village maps – each with
homeowner’s names – are an invaluable resource for those
doing research into old roads, houses, or family genealogy.
Hikers and hunters find these old atlases useful as many of
the old roads can still be found as trails in the woods
today. |
David Allen scanning the Hancock map from the
Beers Atlas of Addison County. |
A
typical F.W. Beers atlas, Addison County, was published in
1871. The original is a hardbound atlas measuring about 13”
x 16”. It has 50 pages containing 55 separate town and
village maps, early history of each town, business
directories and statistical data. Some of the atlases (but
not Addison) feature sketches of the homes of prominent
citizens, local landmarks, and public buildings. The
location of each factory, business, church and school was
also mapped.
Right: Allen holding an original Addison County Atlas,
and the new CDROM edition. |
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These old atlases are a well
known resource of Vermont History, but original copies are
hard to find, and are often in fragile condition. Mr. Allen
received access to original copies for scanning at the
Vermont Historical Society, the Library of Congress, and
from several private owners. There are more than 600
separate maps of Vermont’s towns and villages contained
within the original documents and on these new
reproductions. This is the second set of old Vermont maps
published by Allen. Last year he scanned all of Vermont’s
1850s county wall maps. “I was surprised and pleased at
how well the 1850s maps were received” said Allen. “They
have sold very well on-line and in bookstores. I think the
old roads controversy in Vermont must have had a lot to do
with their popularity.” The Vermont legislature has just
passed a law requiring towns to inventory their roads, and
these maps are a primary source for road research. The
“Beers” atlases are the same sort of map, showing roads and
homeowner names, but with many changes from the earlier maps
– the Civil War and railroad expansion led to a lot of
migration into and out of Vermont in this period. For more
information, check the web site
www.old-maps.com or call 413-772-2801 (days). The CDs
are priced at $30 each (plus $4 shipping). The map CDs can
also be found at bookstores throughout Vermont. |
List
of Vermont’s “Beers” Atlases (11 atlases, 1 wall map)
County Year Towns
Pages
Addison
1871 24
50
Bennington
1869 17 34
Caledonia
1875
17 64
Chittenden 1869
17 36
Essex (wallmap) 1878
19 1
Franklin & Grand Isle 1871 20
46
Lamoille & Orleans 1878 29
74
Orange 1877
17 48
Rutland
1869 25
46
Washington
1873 21 45
Windham 1869
23 43
Windsor
1869 24
47
(For last year's Press Release on the
1850s maps of the same areas,
click here.).
(For links to some sample village maps - including
comparisons between the 1850s maps and the 1870s "Beers"
Maps, see Sample Village Maps - Comparisons
Old Maps
PO Box 54 West Chesterfield, NH 03466
www.old-maps.com
David Allen 413-772-2801 (days) daven
at sover.net (email address, replace at with @) |
A section of the 1871 map of the Town of Addison - from the
Beers Atlas of Addison County. (This
image has been reduced for fast web display - the CDROM has
very high quality scans.) |
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