Manuscript Map of the St. George Inlet and Lower St. George River in Maine

BERNARD, Sir Francis (1712-1779), and John NORTH, Surveyor (c.1708-1763)

Published by Fort St. George, i.e. present day Thomaston, Maine, 1759

About this Item

Pen-and-ink with grey wash on a large sheet of laid paper, with green highlights indicating meadows and marshes and red lines delineating portage routes, compass rose additionally decorated in green, red, and yellow. Inscribed and signed at lower left: "The annexed plan is A Survey of St. Georges River measured and Laid down by a scale of six hundred and forty poles to an Inch this 2d. Day of March 1759. John North." Period ink inscription on verso: "Plan of St. George's River." Provenance: Sir Francis Bernard, Colonial Governor of Massachusetts (1712-1779); by descent to Robert Spencer Bernard, Nether Winchendon House, Buckinghamshire, England. French and Indian War manuscript map of Fort St. George and the surrounding areas along the St. George River in Maine. In November 1969, noted historian of cartography William P. Cumming discovered in the family home of Sir Francis Bernard "a collection of maps that, in purpose and type, differed so markedly from the more usual military, coastal and general colonial maps of the time that it stands out in both interest and importance." Sir Francis Bernard became the Colonial Governor of Massachusetts in late 1759, shortly after British troops were victorious in the Battle of Quebec. That decisive French and Indian War victory opened a vast region for renewed English settlement and trade, thus necessitating the need for more accurate surveys of the roads and inland waterways. In the process of organizing those surveys, Bernard collected the surveys of the region accomplished to that time, including the present survey by John North. As early as 1733, North served as a Justice of the Peace in York County, continuing that role in various Massachusetts (i.e. Maine) counties into the 1760s, and later serving as Judge of the Court of Common Pleas in Lincoln County. During the French and Indian War, North was commissioned as a Captain and commanded Fort Frederick, and subsequently at Fort Pemmaquid and Fort St. George. A trained surveyor, among the earliest surveys of Pemaquid, Maine, are by his hand. The present survey, on a scale of approximately 2 miles to the inch, is focused on the area surrounding and upriver of Fort St. George. Along the St. George inlet, toponyms include "Henderson's" and "Burton's Garrison" along with several harbors and landing places. Meadows, hills, rivers, and carrying places are all clearly delineated in the vicinity of the Fort, which is identified with a symbol and the notation "St. Georges Fort and block house." The map extends approximately 30 miles up the St. George river, with many ponds, brooks, dams and falls identified. This area of Maine would see action during the French and Indian War, as Acadian raiders mounted expeditions against British settlements along the coast. On 13 August 1758, French officer Charles Deschamps de Boishébert left the Acadian refugee camp Miramichi, New Brunswick with 400 soldiers, intending to attach and lay siege to Fort St. George. His detachment reached there on 9 September, but was caught in an ambush and had to withdraw. The present map includes a notation on Penobscot Bay: "Where ye French & Indians landed last fall.".

Seller Inventory # 26257

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Manuscript Map of the St. George Inlet and Lower St. George River in Maine
• Publisher: Fort St. George, i.e. present day Thomaston, Maine
• Publication Date: 1759
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)
• Seller catalogs:
  • North America