Puget Sound and San Juan Islands

A beautiful coastal chart of Puget Sound that measures almost five feet long!

This huge chart of Washington State’s Puget Sound covers the area between Olympia in the south to Bellingham in the north, and includes the southeastern tip of Canada’s Vancouver Island. Apart from standard maritime information like depth soundings (in fathoms), navigational beacons, buoys, anchorages, and shipping traffic lines, the map presents a wealth of fascinating information of interest to the tourist and local alike.

Shipwreck sites, of which there are allegedly over four hundred, are indicated; along with the locations of campgrounds, picnic areas, and other points of interest. Countless annotations provide background on historical sites, geographic details, and local attractions. The latter are also referenced in a tabled of annual Puget Sound Festivals and Fairs in the lower left.

There are also two illustrations of sailing ships – the sloops of war H.M.S. Discovery and U.S.S. Decatur. Both played a significant role in the regional history – the former as the lead ship in George Vancouver’s exploration of the Pacific Northwest and the latter as protector of Seattle from Native American attacks during its infancy in the mid-1850’s.