1920 Eldridge Nautical Chart / Map of Massachusetts Bay

A very large 1919 George Eldridge blueback nautical chart or maritime map of Massachusetts Bay. It provides a wealth of navigational information across the entire span of the bay from Cape Ann, past Boston, and on both coasts of Cape Cod.

A Closer Look

Coverage extends from Cape Ann south to Chatham and from Boston east to the Atlantic Ocean. Boston appears in the upper left with its constituent parts labeled (Charlestown, East Boston, South Boston, Dorchester, and Roxbury, most of which were independent towns not long before) and is shaded gray for emphasis. The many flats and islands in Boston Harbor are illustrated with excellent navigational detail. Coastal lights are marked in red manuscript ink. Countless depth soundings are noted throughout.

Coastal cities and towns, including Salem, Marblehead, Gloucester, Plymouth, Barnstable, Yarmouth, and Provincetown, are labeled. Text in the top and bottom margin state that one ought to 'use Eldridge's Tide Book with the Chart'. Dashed lines mark out the distance between major navigational points such as lighthouses and buoys, with a previous owner adding a couple of similar handwritten annotations.

Blueback Charts

Blueback nautical charts began appearing in London in the late 18th century. Bluebacks, as they came to be called, were privately published large format nautical charts known for their distinctive blue paper backing. The backing, a commonly available blue manila paper traditionally used by publishers to wrap unbound pamphlets, was adopted as a practical way to reinforce the low-quality paper used by private chart publishers in an effort to cut costs. That being said, not all blueback charts are literally backed with blue paper. The earliest known blueback charts include a 1760 chart issued by Mount and Page, and a 1787 chart issued by Robert Sayer.

The tradition took off in the early 19th century, when British publishers like John Hamilton Moore, Robert Blachford, James Imray, William Heather, John William Norie, Charles Wilson, David Steel, R. H. Laurie, and John Hobbs, among others, rose to dominate the chart trade. Bluebacks became so popular that the convention was embraced by chartmakers outside of England, including Americans Edmund March Blunt and George Eldridge, as well as Scandinavian, French, German, Russian, and Spanish chartmakers. Blueback charts remained popular until the late 19th century, when government subsidized organizations like the British Admiralty Hydrographic Office and the United States Coast Survey began issuing their own superior charts on high quality paper that did not require reinforcement.

Publication History and Census

This chart was drawn by A. N. Houghton and published by Wilfrid O. Wight, noted as an 'adjuster of compasses' in 1919, with a stamp below the title and a handwritten annotation in the bottom margin indicating that it was sold in 1920. It is copyrighted to Sydna Eldridge, the widow of George Washington Eldridge, son of the George Eldridge who began the chart publishing firm which bore his name. Several editions of this chart were published. We have located examples in institutional collections dating as early as 1898 (which has a copyright date of 1895 suggesting even earlier editions) and as late as 1924 bearing the same title. But we have been unable to locate any other examples of the 1919/1920 edition in institutional collections or on the market.