America’s Products and the Trucks That Carry Them

Keep on truckin!

[From the PJ Mode Collection of Persuasive Maps at Cornell University]

“This pictorial map of the U.S. shows major products in each state dependent on shipping by commercial trucking. Around the border are images of 32 vehicles, from the fire truck to the ice cream truck. It was produced in 1958, two years after authorization of the Interstate Highway System – which facilitated travel by larger trucks at higher speed – and at a time when federal weight limitations on trucks were under discussion.

It is possible that this map was part of a lobbying campaign by its publisher, the Automobile Manufacturer’s Association. (For example, a note at the bottom right of the map states that “Any portion of this map may be reproduced editorially in newspapers and magazines” with attribution.)”

In addition to the variety of trucks comprising the border, numerous illustrations of agricultural products and industries across the United States highlight the ubiquitous need for an effective nationwide transportation network. The map was designed by the General Drafting Company of Convent Station, New Jersey, and was published in 1958 by the Automobile Manufacturer’s Association of Detroit, Michigan.

This example is accompanied by an education tool distributed by the American Trucking Association, Inc. It includes bulletin board pinups for a classroom consisting of photographs and indoctrinating text like, “One-third of all students reach school by bus. Better schools can be built when more students use one large school instead of many small ones.” Teacher suggestions on the envelope include bulletin board headlines like Trucks Work For Us and How We Get Our Goods.

Source.