Pearson’s Road Guide Sectional and Route Maps within 50 Miles Radius of Sydney

An uncommon guide for the roads around Sydney after World War I.

“There is no country in the world, not even Great Britain, France, Italy, nor any place on the Continent, which offers such inducements for touring as New South Wales. Possessing as it does scenery that is unrivalled, and which is so easy of access, it is no wonder that tourists from various countries speak so highly of our State as an ideal touring resort.” – pg 6.

This fascinating guide to Sydney and 50 miles around offers an interesting window into the brief period when cyclists, equestrians, and motorists shared the road. The well-organized volume offers an index of places, a list of recommended routes (complete with small maps and itineraries), and numerous contemporary advertisements. Eighty single-page maps, printed in color at a scale of 1″ = 1 mile, present a detailed snapshot of the landscape, noting major geographic features, locations of interest, primary transportation routes, and more.

The work was compiled by J. Pearson, who is also credited as a hatter and mercer catering to a motoring audience. Published in Sydney by H.E.C. Robinson, Ltd., one of Australia’s largest commercial publishers in the first half of the 20th century. Though the work is undated, there are several cited statistics from 1918, plus at least one advertisement (for A.C. Jones’ Six Cylinder Cars) notes that the firm only hires Returned Soldiers, so the likely date of issue is late 1919 or 1920.