Washington in Maps

Standing among the most important cities of the world, and a planned city from its inception, Washington, District of Columbia, is abundantly documented. In Washington in Maps, Iris Miller delves into this historic documentation, into sometimes rare and often buried maps and letters and charts, and reveals to us a brilliant portrait of this ever-evoloving capital of a nation.

Washington in Maps features, in full color, over 100 glorious maps, dating from the seventeenth century to the present, featuring the most splendid antique maps of Washington-to the extraordinary, otherworldly satellite imagery of today. Included are maps by Thomas Jefferson and Pierre Charles L'Enfant, the man upon whose design modern Washington now stands; a map of Captain John Smith from 1608; and maps by the Senate Park (McMillan) Commission, among many others.

Maps detail both the current reality of a place, and, as well, offer imaginative renderings of future possibility, in the process often becoming something of extraordinary beauty in their own right. Washington in Maps charts a passionate course through this terrain and serves as a testament to the wonder, artistry, and intelligence that these maps manifest.

Iris Miller maintains a practice in landscape architecture and urban design in Washington, D.C., where she is Director of Landscape Studies in the School of Architecture and Planning at The Catholic University of America.