Carte de La Floride, de la Louisiane, et Pays Voisins

Fascinating 1750s map of the French colonial empire in America.

This map of the French province of Louisiana and adjacent Spanish provinces of Florida and New Mexico attempts to define the territorial claims of the French in the midst of a wider colonial conflict. The cartographer, Jacques Nicholas Bellin, had a national interest in extending French territory as broadly as possible, relegating the claims of rivals Spain and England to the edges of the image. However, this is not to say that he wasn’t accurate in his depiction. Bellin incorporated the latest available information from Jesuit missionaries, French fur traders and ships’ captains and was meticulously detailed in his cartography.

Labeled Native American tribes, forts, villages, towns, missions, and navigable rivers provide an interesting snapshot of mid-18th century colonial America in the middle of the French and Indian War. Fort Duquesne, Fort Niagara, and Fort Necessity (all seen in the upper left) hosted significant engagements during the conflict. The last, the Battle of Fort Necessity, took place in July of 1754 and was the only surrender in the military career of George Washington.

The map was published by Jacques Nicholas Bellin in 1757 for inclusion in Abbe Prevost d’Exiles’ important book, Histoire generale des voyages.