The Acquisitions Table: Atlas of Bergen County, New Jersey

Atlas of Bergen County, New Jersey.[Reading, Pa.]:  Published by C.C. Pease, successor to A.H. Walker, [1876].

According to the bookseller’s description, this Bergen County atlas is the most elaborate and attractive of all New Jersey county atlases of the 1870s.  It is also one of the most difficult to find, as many copies have fallen victim to the breakers and plate peddlers attracted to its lithographed views of scenery and architecture, as well as hand-colored maps.

The volume is full of the kind of detailed information social historians and genealogists cherish.  It starts at the macro-level with world and continental maps, but quickly narrows its focus to North America, then the United States, then New Jersey, until it finally hones in on its target: Bergen County.  The bulk of the atlas is at the level of each individual township and village – mapping each plot of land and house.  At its most micro, it depicts David Knowles’ Mill (in Lodi) and George Miller’s Residence (in Midland).  The “street view” depicted here is quite different from today’s Google Earth view, but one imagines it will change even more as rebuilding continues in the aftermath of 2012’s Hurricane Sandy.

Published by

Elizabeth Watts Pope

Curator of Books, American Antiquarian Society

2 thoughts on “The Acquisitions Table: Atlas of Bergen County, New Jersey”

  1. I believe the farm of my ancestors, the Van Hassel family, was located just west of the area shown on this atlas page, along Franklin Avenue. Is the rest of this resource digitized and accessible online? Thanks!

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