Historical Atlas of California

By Derek Hayes

Book Overview

Using nearly five hundred historical maps and many other illustrations--from rough sketches drawn in the field to commercial maps to beautifully rendered works of art--this lavishly illustrated volume is the first to tell the story of California's past from a unique visual perspective. Covering five hundred years of history, it offers a compelling and informative look at the transformation of the state from before European contact through the Gold Rush and up to the present. The maps are accompanied by a concise, engaging narrative and by extended captions that elucidate the stories and personalities behind their creation. At once a valuable reference and an exhilarating adventure through history, the Historical Atlas of California, featuring many rare and unusual maps, will be a treasured addition to any library. Distilling an enormous amount of information into one volume, it presents a fascinating chronicle of how California came to be what it is today. Copub: Douglas & McIntyre

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0520252586
• ISBN13: 9780520252585
• Release Date: October 2007
• Publisher: University of California Press
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 4.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 9.8" x 12.8"

Customer Reviews

Derek Hayes Map Book of California

It was great when it was talking about the history of California, from the time of Cortes. It had great explanations about each of its maps, and the maps showed the California culture, with the Spanish maps, and cartoons.

A "must have" book for serious people

Hayes' "Historical Atlas of California" is a real treasure. His book spans 500 years of the history of CA. It is very readable and a "must have" for any student of historical geography. I strongly recommend it. It is well written and very well illustrated. A real find. Anybody interested in California's past and future would be well advised to at least peruse this "coffee table" sized book. It has a wealth of information and lots of rare maps.

Highly recommended

I was delighted with the book. It is a treasure trove of information provided you use it properly. I use a magnifying glass to view the maps in close detail to get the most out of the book. If you look closely at the maps you are treated to an "evolution" of the state from the time that it was thought to be an island to the present. By inspecting each map very closely you see places that now don't exist, lakes that have disappeared, and roads that have gone from dirt paths to super highways. If you love history as I do, you'll love this book, I also recommend "the Historical Atlas of the United States" by the same author. Same format, same great look at the nation through time.

Historical Atlas of California

This beautiful book contains copies of 476 historic maps dealing with California history from the earliest times to the present. This book is for any historian interested in California history, and any individual interested in maps. These are located in repositories all over the United States, thus we can virtually travel and update our history by reading this wonderful book. I was particularly delighted to find an 1847 rendering of the battle of Los Angeles between the Americans and the Mexicans. Each map is thoroughly cataloged in an appendix along with a fine bibliograhy.

More historical atlas excellence from Mr. Hayes

The Historical Atlas of California is truly a drink of ice water in the desert of map history for the golden state. Certainly, nothing existing can compare with the pure visual appeal of this latest addition to Derek Hayes' wonderful historical atlases. This book is a very impressive blend of solid scholarship and impeccable taste in cartographic materials covering the state from the "California as an island" representations to the whimsical joys of Jo Mora's pictorial masterpieces. This work is a much needed historical overview of the geographic representations of the area and a real map page turner featuring beautiful works of art that also happen to be maps. It never skimps on illustration which makes it a genuine coffee table book and the text makes it a worthy addition to any first-class reference collection. The "Historical Atlas of California" not only fills a great void in historical information on mapping in California, it is just plain fun to page through time and time again. As a map librarian for almost twenty years I have seen few atlases as impressive as this one.