1895 Stoddard Tourist Map of Lake Champlain

A scarce 1895 Seneca Ray Stoddard map of Lake Champlain issued for the Central Vermont Railroad. It was published at the height of the lake's late 19th-century popularity as a tourist destination.

A Closer Look

Presented in an unusual, elongated format, this map covers the entirety of Lake Champlain and the adjacent parts of Vermont, New York, and Quebec, from Missisquoi Bay and Rouses Point to Fort Ticonderoga. Stoddard details rail lines (various other lines in addition to the Central Vermont), basic topography, and roadways. On the lake, islands, reefs, points, bays, and other features are labeled, including historical notes such as the site of the 1814 Battle of Plattsburgh. There are insets detailing the lower portions of the lake from Whitehall to Fort Ticonderoga, the Richelieu River, steamboat routes on the lake, distances from Burlington (by rail) to Portland, Boston, Montreal, and other cities, and smaller circular insets at left demonstrating distances from Westport and Crown Point, New York.

The Central Vermont Railroad

The Vermont Central Railroad was the state's first railroad, chartered in 1843 to connect Burlington with Montpelier, the Connecticut River, and the New Hampshire border at White River Junction. Work began in 1846, with the line opening in stages and becoming fully operational in 1849. The company expanded in the following years, acquiring other lines, eventually reaching into Canada, connecting Montreal and Ottawa with New London, Connecticut. In 1872, the name changed to Central Vermont Railroad, flipping the first two words of the company's original name. It was the primary means for travelers from Boston and other East Coast cities to access Lake Champlain, which saw a resulting boost in tourism.

In the years following this map's publication, the company ran into financial difficulties and was reorganized several times, with portions coming under the control of the Grand Trunk Railway and Canadian National Railway. The Central Vermont continued to operate somewhat independently under the Canadian National until 1995 when the former was privatized. Still, portions of it continue to operate, especially the New England Central Railroad, a freight line maintaining the connection between New London and Lake Champlain.

Publication History and Census

Stoddard first issued this map in 1892, and as such, it was one of the earliest tourist maps to focus exclusively on Lake Champlain. He sold it independently by mail order, and it was also included in several publications of the Central Vermont Railroad, as seen here. Stoddard issued numerous revised editions to at least 1911. The present example appeared in the 1895 book Summer Homes among the Green Hills of Vermont, and along the Shores of Lake Champlain, issued by the railroad. Despite many editions, this map is quite rare, with very few examples identified in institutional collections. Earlier and later editions of the map are independently cataloged in the OCLC (61296932) at eight institutions, but not this edition. The 1895 edition of the entire Summer Homes book is held by the University of Rochester and Cornell University.