1794 Lempriere Map of Bermuda

Clement Lemprière (January 28, 1682 - July 9, 1746) was a Jerseyman sea captain, military engineer, cartographer, hydrographer, artist, and engraver active in the first half of the 18th century. Of note, most records suggest that Lemprière was born in 1683, but there can be no doubt that his birth was in 1682, as we have found his original baptismal records. We can only assume that 1683 was a transcription error that was subsequently copied by others. Lemprière was born on the isle of Jersey in the town of St. Helier. Little is known of his early life or education, but befitting the life of a sea captain, he was well traveled. There are unverified reports that he was a resident cartographer in charge of the Dawning Room at the Tower of London in 1725 and possibly a drawing tutor to Queen Anne. He is noted for drafting Henry Popple's important map of North America. He traveled to Bermuda sometime in the 1730s, conducting, probably by contract, the first map of that island since the Nelson survey of 1660. By the 1740s he was in the British Army, where he was attached to the Engineering Corps. He was later appointed Chief Draughtsman of the Ordnance Office. His most acclaimed work is a set of sixteen sketches for the eleven tapestries of the Spanish Armada that once hung in the British Parliament. When the Parliament house burnt in 1834, the original tapestries were lost, leaving Lemprière sketches as the only surviving record. More by this mapmaker...

Laurie and Whittle (fl. 1794 - 1858) were London, England, based map and atlas publishers active in the late 18th and early 19th century. Generally considered to be the successors to the Robert Sayer firm, Laurie and Whittle was founded by Robert Laurie (c. 1755 - 1836) and James Whittle (1757-1818). Robert Laurie was a skilled mezzotint engraver and is known to have worked with Robert Sayer on numerous projects. James Whittle was a well-known London socialite and print seller whose Fleet Street shop was a popular haunt for intellectual luminaries. The partnership began taking over the general management of Sayer's firm around 1787; however, they did not alter the Sayer imprint until after Sayer's death in 1794. Apparently Laurie did most of the work in managing the firm and hence his name appeared first in the "Laurie and Whittle" imprint. Together Laurie and Whittle published numerous maps and atlases, often bringing in other important cartographers of the day, including Kitchin, Faden, Jefferys and others to update and modify their existing Sayer plates. Robert Laurie retired in 1812, leaving the day to day management of the firm to his son, Richard Holmes Laurie (1777 - 1858). Under R. H. Laurie and James Whittle, the firm renamed itself "Whittle and Laurie". Whittle himself died six years later in 1818, and thereafter the firm continued under the imprint of "R. H. Laurie". After R. H. Laurie's death the publishing house and its printing stock came under control of Alexander George Findlay, who had long been associated with Laurie and Whittle. Since, Laurie and Whittle has passed through numerous permeations, with part of the firm still extant as an English publisher of maritime or nautical charts, 'Imray, Laurie, Norie and Wilson Ltd.' The firm remains the oldest surviving chart publisher in Europe. Learn More...