Maine Map 1894 Geological Print - Augusta, Bangor, Portland, Rumford

Charles H. Hitchcock, geologist to the state of Maine, compiled this geological map in 1894 for J. H. Stuart & Co.'s Atlas of the State of Maine, a South Paris publisher's reference covering the state's history, education system, railroads, and natural resources alongside its geography. Lithographed and hand colored to show nine distinct geological formations, the map represents one of the most scientifically detailed state maps in this entire collection, built not for travelers or merchants but for understanding what lay beneath Maine's surface. By 1894 interest in the state's mineral and granite resources had grown considerably, and Hitchcock's survey offered the first widely published, systematic picture of Maine's underlying geology. Stuart's atlas, issued from South Paris, was itself a point of regional pride, a Maine-made publication covering Maine's own land.

Augusta, the state capital along the Kennebec River, and Bangor, the great lumber port on the Penobscot, both sit atop the map's geological formations as reference points for the state's more familiar political geography. Portland anchors the southern coast, while Rumford, in the western mountains, sits near formations that would soon support a significant paper and pulp industry built on the region's forests and waterpower. The map's color-coded geological units, ranging from ancient Laurentian rock to more recent alluvium, trace Maine's deep natural history across a landscape shaped by both bedrock and glaciation. Rumford's location near valuable stands of timber and strong river power would soon make it a center of Maine's paper and pulp industry.

Unlike the settlement-focused 1859 Mitchell-Desilver and 1845 Morse and Breese maps of Maine also in this collection, this 1894 geological sheet offers a scientific rather than commercial view of the state, a rare find for anyone drawn to earth science or Maine's granite and mineral heritage. This piece suits a geologist, a Maine native, or a collector of unusual nineteenth-century thematic maps. It is offered unframed in a range of sizes. Its focus on bedrock and mineral resources rather than roads or towns makes it a genuinely rare find within this collection.