Atlas of the City of New York, Borough of Queens, Long Island City, Newtown, Flushing, Jamaica, Far Rockaway : from actual surveys and official plans

This wonderfully detailed atlas of Queens was compiled by civil engineers George W. and Walter S. Bromley and published in Philadelphia in 1909, only about a decade after the New York borough was officially established. The volume was issued with the primary purpose of supplying up-to-date information for real estate brokers, insurance firms, and other similar interests. Like many urban areas of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, fire risk in New York was a constant threat, even along the coasts of Jamaica Bay and the East River.

The maps are each colored by hand to reflect the composition of individual buildings (many of which are labeled) – pink for brick, yellow for wood, and brown for stone. Important infrastructure like transportation routes, sewers, water mains, and fire hydrants are also carefully noted. The large scale of each plate, generally 1″ = 300′, allows for the transmittal of significant detail and offers an engaging overview of Queens during the late 19th century. At the time, the Long Island Railroad, recently electrified, was an important catalyst for growth and development. Industrialization was proceeding at a significant rate, reflected in the numerous factories and railway facilities labeled as under construction. However, much of the area remained sparsely populated farmland. A notable example is captured by Plates 41 and 43, mostly rural pastures that would later become the John F. Kennedy International Airport.

The atlas is uncommon on the market and in institutions. As of July 2024, WorldCat notes only six examples, all of which are in New York except the Osher Map Library at the University of Southern Maine. OCLC# 1102078193; 61451054.