This Map Presents a Bostonian’s Idea of the United States

Satirical look at the United States from the perspective of a Bostonian.

This map of the United States reflects the geographic notions of a stereotypical self-centered Bostonian. The exaggerated eastern seaboard puts Boston in the center of the action, while the rest of the county is condensed into an amorphous mass labeled “Western Prairies.” It is here, according to the author, that towns like Dayton, Tula, Milwaukee and “other such cities” are located. A list of universities includes only those found in Massachusetts, noting that “there are several excellent schools in the west” and again relegating the rest of the U.S. to a simple characterization.

The geographic inaccuracies are noted in a disclaimer by the publisher, which states (tongue-in-cheek) that the map is not to be used for navigation, astronomy or meteorology. This amusing wit is characteristic of the maps Wallingford designed during his career. In addition to this map, he also created a similar map of the United States from the perspective of a New Yorker. At the time of publication, the maps were novel in their use of satire and became very popular, leading to several different variants issued in the mid-20th century.