BACKGROUND: This book, with the spine title reading as above, has no tile page or table of contents. Quarter leather and marble boards. Apparently bound to order. Ink signature on front free end paper: “J .D. Graham Lt. Colonel U. S. Army”. James Duncan Graham (1799-1865) was an early member and founder of the Corps of Topographical Engineers from 1817 to his death as a Colonel in 1865. In 1839-40 he was astronomer of the surveying party that established the boundary-line between the U. S. and the then new Republic of Texas. In 1843 he directed the surveys and preparation of the “Map of the Boundary Lines between the United States and the adjacent British Provinces ….” During 1851 Graham was United States astronomer in the survey of the boundary line between the U. S. and Mexico. His ink signature also appears on two of the reports described later. Apparently the book was his personal copy.

CONTENTS: The book contains over 500 pages including 15 reports, some with maps and plates, as follows:

[1]. “Report of the Secretary of War, Communicating, In compliance with a resolution of the Senate, a map of the valley of Mexico, from Surveys by Lieutenants Smith and Hardcastle.” 13 pages.
Senate. 31st Congress, 1st Session. Ex. Doc. No. 11. January 17, 1849

“Map of the Valley of Mexico with a Plan of the Defences….”

[2]. “Report from the Secretary of War, Communicating, in Compliance with a Resolution of the Senate, the Report and Map of the Route from Fort Smith, Arkansas, to Santa Fé, New Mexico, made by Lieutenant Simpson.”
31st Congress, 1st Session. Senate. Ex. Doc. No. 12. 25 pages.

“Map of route pursued by U.S. troops from Fort Smith, Arkansas ….”

“Map, No. 2. Showing Continuation of Details of Fort Smith and Santa Fe….”

“Map, No. 3. Showing Continuation of Details of Fort Smith and Santa Fé Route….”

“Map, No. 4. Showing Continuation of Fort Smith and Santa Fé Route….”

[3]. “Message of the Executive to the General Assembly of Maryland. December Session, 1849. Annapolis 1849.” 32 pages.

[4]. “Report of the Secretary of War Communicating, in compliance with a resolution of the Senate, a map showing the operation of the army of the United States in Texas and the adjacent Mexican states on the Rio Grande accompanied by astronomical observations, and descriptive and military memoirs of the country.”
31st Congress, 1st Session. Senate. Ex. Doc. No. 32. 67 pages.

“Map Showing the Line of March of the Centre Division….”

“Map Showing the Route of the Arkansas Regiment from. …

[5]. “(Part II). Report of the Secretary of the Interior, with Additional correspondence relative to the operations of the commission for running and marking the boundary between the United States and Mexico.”
31st Congress, 1st Session. Senate. Ex. Doc 34. 22 pages.

[6]. “Thirtieth Congress – First Session. Report No. 470. (To accompany bill H. R. No. 219). House of Representatives. Astronomical Observations. April 13, 1848.” 56 pages.

Includes correspondence, primarily about the sun’s parallax.

[7]. “Correspondence between the Secretary of War and General Scott. Message from the President of the United States, transmitting the correspondence between the Secretary of War and Major General Scott, with the accompanying documents, in compliance with the resolution of the House of Representatives of the 17th instance.”
Thirtieth Congress – First Session. Ex. Doc. 59. House of Representatives. 63 pages.

[8]. “Geographical Memoir upon Upper California, In Illustration of His Map of Oregon and California, by John Charles Fremont; Addressed to the Senate of the United States. Washington: Printed by Tippin & Streeper. 1849.”
Thirtieth Congress, 2d Session. Ho. of Reps. Miscellaneous. No. 5.
40 pages.

“Map of Oregon and Upper California from the Surveys of John Charles Fremont and other Authorities. Drawn by Charles Preuss …1848“. “Lithy. by E. Weber & Co. Balto.”: Inset on top of Preuss map : “Profile of the travelling route from the South Pass of the Rocky Mountains to the Bay of San Francisco.” 33 ½”h x 26 ½”w. Tear past left neat line. Boundary lines hand colored in green. Map now detached.

This map can be seen at category MAPS: “Map of Oregon abs Upper California. Fremont and Preuss. 1848.” The map and book are priced as one unit and are not sold separately.

Note: Charles Preuss had been a surveyor for the Prussian government. After moving to the United States in 1834 with his wife and children, he worked for the Coast Survey under Ferdinand Rudolph Hassler He accompanied Fremont on three of his five exploratory expeditions of the American west. For more information about the important map, see our MAPS category.

“By virtue of a brief phrase, engraved twice on the map and most difficult to read without a hand lens, the map becomes the first to show, to a widespread readership, the region of the new gold strike in California. ..” (Donald Jackson).

[9]. “Report of the Colonel of Topographical Engineers to the Secretary of War, at the opening of the first session of the 31st Congress. Washington: Printed by Wm. M. Belt. 1850. 63 pages.

“Sketch of the Township including Napoleon and the circumjacent Country….”

[10]. “Speech of Hon. Volney E. Howard, of Texas, on the Mexican Boundary Question – The Pacific Railroad – The Collins Steamers. Delivered in the House of Representatives, July 6, 1852. Washington: Printed at the Congressional Globe Office, 1852.” 13 pages.

[11]. “General views in relation to common Roads.”
From the Corps of Topographical Engineers.

A four-page foldout including an unaddressed and unsigned cover letter.

[12]. Events of 1850. Ellet. Appropriation. Dated 1850. 8 pages.

[13]. “Report of the Colonel of the Corps of Topographical Engineers.”
78 pages.

[14]. “Report of the Secretary of War, communicating in answer to a resolution of the Senate, the report of Lieutenant Whipple’s expedition from San Diego to Colorado.” Graham’s signature.
31st Congress, 2d Session. Senate. Ex. Doc. No. 19. 28 pages.

Includes a table of 58 words in the “Diegeenos” language and their English equivalents.

Includes a table, “Vocabulary of about two hundred and fifty words in Yuma and English.”

[15]. “Report of the Secretary of War, communicating Reports in reference to the inundations of the Mississippi river.”
32nd Congress, 1st Session. Senate. Ex. Doc 20. 10 pages.

Ten diagrams.
Ink signature at the top, “Col. Graham”.

CONDITION: Front cover loose. Most maps have tears at the binding. Illustrations foxed. Fremont map detached. Good condition.

Colonel James Duncan Graham (Previous owner)