This month's featured map shows the Gravesend and Coney Island areas in 1787. Hand-copied by Teunis G. Bergen in 1861 "from an old map" that was "probably used in a suit ... in relation to fishing rights," the map features property, names of landowners, and landscape features. A prolific map maker and surveyor, Teunis G. Bergen made hundreds of maps during his lifetime, many of which can be viewed in the BHS Map Collection and the Teunis G. Bergen and Bergen Family Collection. Bergen was also an active historian and genealogist, and served as a U.S. Representative in Congress during the 1860s.
Interested in seeing more maps? You can view the BHS map collection anytime during the library's open hours, Wed.-Fri., from 1-5 p.m. No appointment is necessary to view most maps. Our cataloged maps can be searched through BobCat and our map inventories through Emma.Map of the Month is part of a project to catalog our map holdings, funded through the Council on Library and Information Resources Hidden Collections program. If you would like to help us do more of this kind of work with our exciting map holdings, donate here.
This blog post reflects the opinions of the author and does not necessarily represent the views of Brooklyn Public Library.
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