Boston Rare MapsSpecializing in antique American maps & prints
![Geo[rge] H. Walker & Co., BOSTON AND ENVIRONS. Boston: George H. Walker & Co., 1905.](https://bostonraremaps.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/BRM2960-Walker-Boston_lowres-300x217.jpg)
The firm of George H. Walker was established in 1882 and remained in operation iuntil 1927. An advertisement in the 1882 Boston Business Directorydescribes them as “publishers and lithographers” doing “engraving in all its branches, map engraving and photo-lithographing.” If what survives today is any measure, Walker’s was Boston’s most prolific lithographic firm of the late 19th and early 20th century.
Among other things, George H. Walker issued an important atlas of Massachusetts, separate maps of Boston and its metropolitan area, and birds-eye views of tourist destinations such as Bar Harbor, Edgartown, Lake Sunapee, Narragansett Bay and Mount Washington (Many of the latter were stylistically similar, rendered as decorative chromolithographs on thin paper, folded and tipped into printed card wrappers.) The output of the firm extended well beyond maps and views, however, to include among other things portraits, sheet music, and book illustrations.
For more on George H. Walker and his firm, see the excellent biographies in Pierce and Slautterback’s Boston Lithography and John Reps’ Views and Viewmakers of Urban America.
![Geo. H. Walker & Co., BIRDS EYE VIEW OF CASCO BAY : PORTLAND, MAINE AND SURROUNDINGS. [Portland?] Harpswell Steamboat Company, 1906.](https://bostonraremaps.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/BRM3950-Walker-Casco-Bay-1906_lowres-scaled-e1630534485882-150x150.jpg)
A lovely chromolithographic bird’s-eye view of Casco Bay, Maine issued in 1906 by a Portland hotel. The view depicts Casco Bay from Cape Elizabeth to Harpswell Neck and Baileys and Orrs Islands. The Maine interior is shown in the middle ground, heavily foreshortened, and the High Peaks of the White Mountains are just visible in […]
A lovely example of this well-known 1903 bird’s-eye view of Lake Winnipesaukee, unusual for being in vibrant chromolithographic color on heavy paper. By 1903 the Lakes and White Mountain regions of New Hampshire had become major tourist destinations, with a well-developed network of rail links and hotels. Accompanying this development was a rich literature and […]
An interesting bird’s-eye view of the Charles River and Boston’s western suburbs looking southwest from an imaginary point high over Waltham, encompassing much of Dedham, Natick, Needham, Newton, Waltham, Wellesley and other towns. Through it all winds the serpentine Charles River, passing landmarks such as the Waltham Watch Factory, Norumbega Park and the dam and […]
A rare and beautiful view of Bar Harbor and Mt. Desert Island, depicted when it was a favored summer resort of the Gilded Age elite. The image depicts Bar Harbor as seen looking southward from an imaginary elevated viewpoint over Bar Island. The town’s sprawling hotels, clubs and mansions are prominently featured, as is its […]
A most appealing pictorial map of downtown Boston, drawn by Richard Lufkin and issued in 1930 to promote the Boston Elevated Railway. The map provides a detailed view of Boston’s intricate street plan—a terror to drivers even today–and uses different line forms to delineate the routes of rapid transit, trolley, and bus lines. Accompanying the […]
![Geo[rge] H. Walker & Co., BOSTON AND ENVIRONS. Boston: George H. Walker & Co., 1905.](https://bostonraremaps.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/BRM2960-Walker-Boston_lowres-e1528749256176-150x150.jpg)
A rare and appealing bird’s-eye view of Boston and Environs as seen from a point high above the Harbor. This panoramic view is centered on Boston but extends south to Nantasket, west to Framingham and Mount Wachusett, and north to Swampscott. The more populous areas along the coast are highlighted in red, while the area’s […]
![Geo[rge] H. Walker & Co., NEW HISTORICAL MAP OF METROPOLITAN BOSTON. Boston: George H. Walker & Co., 1898.](https://bostonraremaps.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/BRM3243-Walker-Boston-1898_lowres-150x150.jpg)
A mammoth and extremely rare historical map of Boston and its metropolitan area at the turn of the 20th century, with a wealth of historical information. Measuring nearly six feet high and four-and-one-half wide, this absolutely enormous map depicts the Boston metropolitan area, bounded by Swampscott, Billerica, Dover and Braintree. Town boundaries are shown; as are seemingly every […]
A fine example of this well-known chromolithographic bird’s-eye view of Casco Bay and Portland, Maine, lithographed for the Maine Central Railroad by George H. Walker. Established through merger in 1862, by the early 20th century the Maine Central Railroad dominated its market, with lines throughout the state and neighboring New Hampshire. It commissioned this lovely […]
By the early 20th century the Lakes and White Mountain regions of New Hampshire had become major tourist destinations, with a well-developed network of rail links, hotels, and paths and carriage-roads for experiencing the mountain scenery. Accompanying and advancing this development was a rich literature and visual iconography revealed in maps and prints. This view […]
A spectacular promotional bird’s-eye view of Mount Washington and the White Mountains, issued by the Boston & Maine Railroad. By the early 20th century the Lakes and White Mountain regions of New Hampshire were major tourist destinations, with a well-developed network of hotels and resort towns and villages. With the proliferation of the automobile some […]