GLMS 104 - Map and Navigational Chart Collection

File 1

Title	GLMS 104 - Map and Navigational Chart Collection
Introduction	The collection of navigational charts has been acquired over many years, primarily from the Jerome Library at Bowling Green State University. Literary and property rights are dedicated to the public and duplication is permitted for the purpose of preservation and research. Preparation of a guide to this collection was completed in June 1993 by Mark J. Barnes, Teri Branham, and Stacey Brinker.
Agency History	Though not the sole producer of charts in this collection, the United States Lake Survey was instrumental in preparing navigational aids for Great Lakes transportation. On March 3, 1841 Congress authorized funding for a survey of the Great Lakes and connecting waterways. The Corps of Topographical Engineers created a new service, the US Lake Survey (USLS), to meet the demand for improved navigational information on the Great Lakes. The US Lake Survey was later transferred to the US Army Corps of Engineers. Currently the functions of the former US Lake Survey are performed by the National Ocean Service within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. By 1882, the Lake Survey had charted the lakes and had drafted 76 charts showing depths in waterways to eighteen feet. Chart corrections were completed over the period up to 1900. Rapid increases in the size of lake vessels made the eighteen foot depth noted on charts obsolete. The need to chart deeper water to accommodate larger vessels began a new round of complete surveys with subsequent corrections. This cycle of surveys and updates continues today as an activity of the National Ocean Service. Responsibility for charting additional related waterways developed in the early twentieth century. Today, the USLS provides charts for rivers leading into Green Bay from central Wisconsin, for the New York State Barge Canal system, and for the Border Lakes on the Minnesota-Ontario boundary. The region of jurisdiction for USLS extends from Vermont to Minnesota, with the Great Lakes portion alone covering 61,000 square miles of water and 5,500 miles of coastline. The Great Lakes Pilot is published as a supplement for chart information. When physical conditions in a charted area are not easily represented on a chart, extended commentary on the location or phenomenon can be found in the Great Lakes Pilot.
Scope and Content	The Navigational Charts Collection documents the history of this form of cartographic aid to mariners on the Great Lakes. Approximately 2,600 items in the 142 cubic foot collection date from 1825 to 2002. These charts were produced by a variety of sources in the United States and Canada. Most items were drafted by the United States Lake Survey, the United States National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, the Canadian Hydrographic Service, and the Canadian Department of Fisheries. Included in this collection are charts for entire lakes for each Great Lake, charts for connecting waterways, and charts for subregions (Lake Erie-West End) in the lakes. Individual harbors are charted, as is the St. Lawrence River. Other locations within the Great Lakes Basin are also represented through charts for the Border Lakes between Ontario and Minnesota. Charts for the New York State Barge Canal system are also present. Scattered Atlantic Coast and Mississippi Valley charts appear in small quantities. Most collection charts were designed for standard navigational purposes. Others were prepared as bathymetric or morphometric guides to the underwater geology of the lake floors. Some charts focus on shoreline development patterns The charts are arranged numerically by catalog number under each lake, river or canal. When searching for charts on an area on the boundary between two bodies of water, researchers should consult the list of charts for both areas to see all potentially useful charts. For example, the mouth of the Detroit River is covered by both Detroit River and Lake Erie charts. Items in this chart collection reflect polyconic and mercator projections. Variations on these two main projections include universal transverse mercator, transverse mercator, and Lambert conformal conic formats. A complete list of individual charts, including number and date is available attached to this finding aid.
Inventory	Drawer 1: Lake Erie Charts Charts, 1849-1990 Drawer 2: Lake Erie Charts Charts, 1926-1974 Drawer 3: Lake Erie Charts Charts, 1933-1973 Drawer 4: Lake Erie Charts Charts, 1849-1983 Drawer 5: Lake Erie Charts Charts, 1948-1991 Drawer 6: Lake Erie Charts Charts, 1974-1993 Drawer 7: Lake Huron Charts Charts, 1828-1974 Drawer 8: Lake Huron Charts Charts, 1828-1973 Drawer 9: Lake Huron Charts Charts, 1895-1974 Drawer 10: Lake Huron Charts Charts, 1941-1992 Drawer 11: Lake Huron Charts 1976-1991 Drawer 12: Lake Michigan Charts Charts, 1864-1981 Drawer 13: Lake Michigan Charts Charts, 1878-1973 Drawer 14: Lake Michigan Charts Charts, 1927-1973 Drawer 15: Lake Michigan Charts Charts, 1931-1993 Drawer 16: Lake Michigan Charts Charts, 1919-1973 Drawer 17: Lake Michigan Charts Charts, 1908-1972 Drawer 18: Lake Michigan Charts Charts, 1906-1972 Drawer 19: Lake Michigan Charts Charts, 1892-1993 Drawer 20: Lake Michigan Charts Charts, 1975-1993 Drawer 21: Lake Michigan Charts Charts, 1975-1992 Drawer 22: Lake Ontario Charts Charts, 1942-1985 Drawer 23: Lake Ontario Charts Charts, 1914-1971 Drawer 24: Lake Ontario Charts Charts, 1940-1977 Drawer 25: Lake Ontario Charts Charts, 1974-1990 Drawer 26: Lake Superior Charts Charts, 1858-1973 Drawer 27: Lake Superior Charts Charts, 1916-1973 Drawer 28: Lake Superior Charts Charts, 1908-1973 Drawer 29: Lake Superior Charts Charts, 1905-1973 Drawer 30: Lake Superior Charts Charts, 1871-1991 Drawer 31: Lake Superior Charts Charts, 1976-1990 Drawer 32: River Charts--St. Clair Lake and River Charts, 1828-1997 Drawer 33: River Charts--St. Mary's River/Straits of Mackinac Charts, 1825-1999 Drawer 34: Charts--Welland Canal, New York Canals, Border Lakes Charts, 1917-1990 Includes Erie Canal and other New York State Canals, locks, Welland Canal and other charts Drawer 35: Charts--Border Lakes Charts, 1964-1985 Includes lakes in southern Canada and northern United States Drawer 36: St. Lawrence River Charts Charts, 1851-1977 Drawer 37: St. Lawrence River Charts Charts, 1926-1979 Drawer 38: St. Lawrence River Charts Charts, 1926-1973 Drawer 39: St. Lawrence River Charts Charts, 1922-1971 Drawer 40: St. Lawrence River Charts Charts, 1923-1977 Drawer 41: St. Lawrence River Charts Charts, 1944-1977 Drawer 42: St. Lawrence River Charts Charts, 1935-1993 Drawer 43: Detroit River Charts Charts, 1873-2000 Drawer 44: Miscellaneous Charts Charts, 1935-1987 Includes Chicago Waterways, Lake Champlain, northern inland lakes Drawer 45: Miscellaneous Charts Charts, 1965-2000 Includes border lakes in New York, Minnesota, Ontario, others Drawer 46: Lake Erie Charts Charts, 1991-2002 Includes harbors for Buffalo, Erie, Ashtabula, Fairport, Cleveland, Lorain, Huron, Sandusky, Toledo, and other charts Drawer 47: Lake Huron Charts Charts, 1989-2002 Includes Saginaw Bay and River, Straits of Mackinac, Les Cheneaux Islands, and other charts Drawer 48: Lake Michigan Charts Charts, 1981-2002 Includes harbors for Milwaukee, Racine, Chicago, Calumet and Indiana, Holland, St. Joseph, Ludington, and other charts Drawer 49: Lake Ontario Charts Charts, 1971-2002 Includes Niagara River and Welland Canal, and harbors for Toronto, Oswego and other charts Drawer 50: Lake Superior Charts Charts, 1990-2000 Includes harbors for Marquette and Presque Isle, Ashland and Washburn, Duluth-Superior and other charts