Nord America

Political organization across the continent of North America during the first quarter of the 19th century.

This finely engraved map of North America highlights the various territorial claims across the continent after about the first quarter of the 19th century. Despite the ongoing conflicts of the Mexican War for Independence, Spanish lands are shown extending from Panama to Alta California, with various provincial outlines noted within the borders of New Spain. British claims (yellow) are highlighted across the Bahamas, Jamaica, and Canada, while the Danes and Russians are confined to Greenland and Alaska, respectively.

The United States stretched from coast to coast a full two decades before the coining of the term Manifest Destiny. Its borders include the newly formed Arkansas Territory (1819), Maine, and Alabama as separate states, and an interesting depiction of Indiana and Illinois, as neither falls along the shore of Lake Michigan.

Topography is depicted in hachure, emphasizing an unbroken chain of the Rocky Mountains between Canada and southern Mexico. Native American tribes, geographic features, and a variety of place names are noted throughout the image, which incorporates the explorations of Lewis & Clark, Alexander Mackenzie, and Alexander von Humboldt.