Military Atlas

Military Atlas, R. Sayer and J. Bennett, 1776

The American Military Pocket Atlas; being an approved collection of correct maps, both general and particular, of the British Colonies; especially those which are now, or probably may be The Theatre of War... Sayer and Bennet, London, 1776.

During the American Revolution, some British officers carried this compact atlas with them; hence it has earned the name “Holster Atlas.” The efficiently designed work boasted the latest geographic data available.

The map of the Southeast displayed is by Bernard Romans who, ironically, would prove sympathetic to the rebels’ cause, and died – some say was murdered – while a prisoner of the British.

Dutch-born Romans was a tireless and meticulous surveyor and mapmaker, expert pilot, a botanist and naturalist, and proponent of an exploratory expedition across the continent.

In 1769, Romans began his survey of the coasts of eastern Florida. When his boat sank near Tampa Bay, he walked overland to St. Augustine, and resumed his surveys in late 1770 on a boat he outfitted at his expense. By the summer of 1771 he had recorded depths, the location of good harbors, and sources of fresh water, data he incorporated into his charts of much of the eastern Florida seaboard.