1876 Dill Pocket Map of the Rangeley Lakes Region, Maine

An essential work on the history and geography of western Maine, this rare 1876 pocket map by Harry P. Dill was one of the first to depict the Rangeley Lakes region in detail.

A Closer Look

Focusing on the Rangeley Lakes region in northwestern Maine, the map covers most of Franklin County and the northernmost part of Oxford County, from Parmachenee Lake near the Canadian border to Umbagog Lake (straddling the New Hampshire border) and Welokennebacook Lake (now Lower Richardson Lake). Survey lines trace the borders of towns, including those yet to be incorporated or even named (for example, 'No. 5. R. 1.' is now Magalloway). Waterways, mountains, and buildings, such as they were, are illustrated and labeled. Rangeley was the only proper village or town in the region (its population was 313 in 1870), being the center of services aimed towards visitors.

While a few settlers resided in this region before Maine's statehood, significant numbers arrived in the mid-19th century, as Maine's total population grew steadily in the decades preceding this map's publication. The Rangeley Lakes became renowned for their natural beauty and drew visitors from far afield. Nonetheless, the only signs of human presence in the wilderness represented here are a road leading to the coast and a handful of lakeside camps, hotels, and associated services for tourists, including an angling association and a camp for members of the Boston Club, giving a hint to the origins of many travelers. Other placenames refer to local history, both Native American and Euro-American. For example, Fryes Camp is named for Joseph Frye, a leader in the Massachusetts militia and veteran of King George's War, the French and Indian War, and the American Revolution, who was granted a plantation in this part of Maine.

Publication History and Census

This map was drawn and published by Harry P. Dill of Phillips, Maine, in 1876. The same year, Charles Farrar's Illustrated Guide-Book to Rangeley was also published, and together, the two provided the first detailed maps of the region. The OCLC locates examples at Harvard University, the Maine State Library, the University of Southern Maine, Brown University, and the University of Michigan.