1888 J. H. Whitney Map of Trinidad, Colorado

An extremely rare 1888 map of Trinidad, Colorado, issued by W. H. Whitney. The map was issued at a heady time in Trinidad's development. The railroads reached Trinidad in the late 1870s, ushering in a boom that lasted until the turn of the century. As a railroad nexus connecting three major lines, Trinidad prospered as a cattle town. Towards the end of the 19th century, massive coal deposits were discovered that further fueled growth. When this map was issued, legendary lawman Bat Masterson was the town marshal, and other colorful characters associated with the old west visited, including Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp.

Unfinished?

Whitney's 1888 map of Trinidad, Colorado, is the rarest and most unusual map of the Whitney railroad map series. It has an unfinished quality to it, bearing no railroad logo and having no printer's imprint. Moreover, unlike the others, there is no defined outer border. This may be that the example we have here is a proof, and more sophisticated versions were issued, that it was made on a shoestring budget, or that it was unfinished.

Exclusively for M. Beshoar

A pastedown near the title states that the map was 'Prepared Exclusively for M. Beshoar'. This would be Dr. Michael Beshoar (1833 - 1907), a prominent physician, politician, and newspaper publisher active in Trinidad from 1867 to his death in 1907. Beshoar was a well-traveled and accomplished individual who has the unusual distinction of having served first in the Confederate Army, then, after being captured and signing an Oath of Amnesty, in the Union Army as a surgeon in Union Army hospitals in Missouri and Nebraska.

W. H. Whitney Maps

Between 1887 and 1888, W. H. Whitney issued a series of separate-issue large-scale pocket maps of western cities serviced by the Rio Grande Western Railroad. These are scarce and little-known but include maps of Pueblo, Trinidad, Salt Lake City, and possibly others. Whitney did not survey the maps himself. Instead, they are based on local railroad and real-estate survey work, which he compiled as a cohesive whole. Most feature advertisements for real-estate development companies. In some cases, the same map was be issued multiple times with different promotions. With the exception of Trinidad, however, all bear the Rio Grande Western logo, suggesting that the railroad was underwriting their production. The Rio Grande Western map of Pueblo, likely the first, was printed by Denver Lithography, and its distinctive clean lines, typography, and muted printed color informed all subsequent Whitney city plans. Whitney's work for the Rio Grande Western caught the attention of the Northern Pacific Railroad in 1889, and between 1889 and 1890, he issued similar maps of cities serviced by the Union Pacific and co-shared lines of the Great Northern and Northern Pacific Railroads. These include Salt Lake City, Portland, Seattle, Astoria, Spokane, Port Townsend, Bellingham Bay, and Tacoma. There are potentially others yet to be discovered. Similar to his Colorado maps, these were underwritten by the Union Pacific Railroad, and all bear that firm's logo. The maps are copyrighted to 'W. H. Whitney', filed in Washington D.C. We have tentatively associated this figure with the Boston civil engineer William Henry Whitney, who, after 1888, owned a private civil engineering, surveying, and mapmaking firm in Boston. While Whitney may not have considered the maps important, instead focusing on real-estate development in Boston, they are today one of his most significant legacies. Individually and collectively, they represent some of the earliest obtainable maps of their respective subjects, marking them as important historical records of the urbanization of the American west. Today, all such maps are extremely scarce.

Publication History and Census

This map was published in 1888 by W. H. Whitney. It has the character of other maps produced by Whitney for the DRG / RGW between 1888 and 1889 - those being Salt Lake City and Pueblo -, but here there is no railroad imprint. Nor is there a printer's imprint. We are aware of just three surviving examples, Denver Public Library, the University of Colorado Boulder, and Colorado College.