The World on the Mercator Projection Exhibiting the American Continent at its Center

America, at the center of the world during the Gilded Age.

This eye-catching world map was published in 1872 by the influential firm of Samuel Augustus Mitchell. The United States sits firmly in the center of the image, with the Transcontinental Railroad connected to a broader network of shipping lanes, explorers’ routes, and Atlantic cables. Alaska, recently purchased from the Russians, massively expands American territory. Relief is shown in hachure, with the Rockies/Andes and Altai Mountains forming unbroken massive ranges that traverse thousands of miles. Bright color, likely applied by hand using a stencil, outlines various political units, though the newly constituted German Empire (1871) is still shown as its constituent states.