Jefferys, Thomas, William Fuller, and William Gerard De Brahm | A rare set of sea charts of Amelia Island

Jefferys, Thomas, William Fuller, and William Gerard De Brahm

Plan of Amelia Island in East Florida; [and] A Chart of the Entrance into St. Mary's River taken by Capt. W. Fuller in November 1769; [and] A Chart of the Mouth of Nassau River and the Soundings on it taken at Low Water by Captn. W. Fuller. London: Thomas Jefferys, 26 March 1770

Copper-engraved map (sheet size: 559 x 664 mm). Original outline and wash color. 

A rare and fine set of sea charts of Amelia Island, produced by the British royal cartographer

The present sheet contains three maps of Amelia Island, in northeastern Florida, and vicinity. It was at the time the most accurate sea chart of the area ever produced. The great skill of Thomas Jefferys, who had established himself as the era's leading cartographer of America, is evinced by the present work. With great elegance and clarity, it expresses the results of detailed coastal surveys conducted by the sea captain William Fuller. At the time that this map was made, this area was part of the British colony of East Florida, which was ceded by Spain following the end of the Seven Years War in 1763.

The map that makes up the left-hand quarter of the sheet, "Plan of Amelia Island," is directly derived from a part of William Gerard De Brahm's monumental "Map of South Carolina & Georgia" (1757). The largest map, "A Chart of the Entrance into St. Mary's River," features the northern end of the island and the waterway that runs in between it and Cumberland Island, Georgia. The plan of the "New Settlement," with its ordered grid of streets planned by the British, is depicted near the northern tip of Amelia Island. Across the river on Cumberland Island, the outlines of the abandoned Fort William are depicted. This map also features a fine navigator's view of the entrance of the river, in the upper right corner. The map below, "A Chart of the Mouth of the Nassau River," features a great deal of hydrographical information as well as sailing instructions for mariners. It details the waterway that runs past the southern tip of Amelia Island, between it and Talbot Island. It is today the location of the main shipping lane leading into the port of Jacksonville.

REFERENCE

Phillips, A List of Maps of America 281