Library of Congress Magazine (LCM), Vol. 1 No. 2: November-December 2012 Page: 12
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CIVIL
WAR
CARTOGRAPHY
THEN AND NOWBY JACQUELINE V. NOLAN
AND EDWARD J. REDMOND
Jacqueline V. Nolan is
a cartographer in the
Library's Geography and
Map Division. Edward J.
Redmond is a reference
specialist in the same
division.DURING THE CIVIL WAR, CARTOGRAPHERS INVENTED NEW TECHNIQUES
TO MAP THE COUNTRY AND THE CONFLICT MORE ACCURATELY THAN
EVER BEFORE IN THE NATION'S HISTORY. SINCE THEN, CARTOGRAPHIC
TECHNOLOGY HAS EVOLVED IN WAYS NEVER IMAGINED, BUT MANY
BASIC ELEMENTS OF MAPMAKING REMAIN THE SAME.MAPMAKING HAS
BEEN REVOLUTIONIZED
SINCE THE CIVIL WAR.
Comparatively speaking,
creating a map using
modern technologies little
resembles yesteryear's
methodology. Yet,
many consistencies in
mapping prevail fromone era to the next. the basic elements of map
production still consist of determining geographic
coordinates and reference points, construction
of projections, design, compilation, drafting and
reproduction.
During the Civil War era, the production of
a finished map was a protracted and labor-
intensive process that involved a variety of skills
and crafts. It began with a land survey or field
reconnaissance by a military topographer-often
on horseback-with sketchbook in hand. Rivers,
roads and significant landscape features were
rapidly drawn in pencil on pages marked with
grid lines. Direction was determined by compass
bearings, and distance was tracked by pacing
on foot or horseback. Data from these field
sketches were later transferred to larger sheets
notated with geographic coordinates to produce a
composite manuscript map of an area or region at
a particular scale.
If a map was to be reproduced for wider
dissemination, copies could be furnished in
a variety of formats. Various photographic
methods were devised during the war to
reproduce manuscript field surveys quickly, in
limited numbers for field commanders. Woodcut
engraving was favored by newspapers, which
published maps almost daily to help war families
locate the remote places described in the letters
they received from their loved ones at the front.
Official and commercial maps were engraved
or lithographed, and then hand-colored. Eachof these processes required trained craftsmen
as well as specialized tools and equipment. lhe
copperplate engravers who worked for the U.S.
Coast and Geodetic Survey, for example, were
primarily German craftsmen recruited especially
for the detailed engraving required by that agency.
Current trends in mapping allow for multiple
layers of data to be combined by one cartographer
using Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
software on a desktop computer. GIS has become
a useful tool for research using spatial data
analysis and is being applied to many fields of
study, wherever geography can be modeled.
Creating a map using GIS is also a layered
process. Using multiple sources of data, such as
field data, research statistics, real-time data, and
so on, information can be overlaid on a base map
representing a geographic area of interest such
as a Civil War battle site. Base layers may be
characterized as either a pixilated, raster format,
derived from remote-sensing imagery, or as a
vector file, which depicts geography as points,
lines and polygons.
Map specifications such as projection, scale,
and key details are determined in this initial
phase. Data is standardized to ensure attribute-
matching with the base layer prior to performing
data analysis.
GIS software packages include toolkits
containing many devices for analysis and editing.
Metadata is compiled to document specific
information about the GIS project, such as
source data, attribute definitions, or algorithms
used for statistical computations. Analysis is the
primary end-product of a GIS project, though
a cartographic rendering may be created such
as a paper map, a web-based application for
visual interpretation on a computer screen, or
applications software for display on mobile
devices (apps).12 LCM Library of Congress Magazine
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Office of Communications, Library of Congress. Library of Congress Magazine (LCM), Vol. 1 No. 2: November-December 2012, periodical, November 2012; Washington, D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc133017/m1/14/?rotate=270: accessed March 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; .