Dec 07, 2023 - Sale 2655

Sale 2655 - Lot 90

Price Realized: $ 1,375
?Final Price Realized includes Buyer’s Premium added to Hammer Price
Estimate: $ 1,200 - $ 1,800
(MANUSCRIPT MAPS.) Samuel B. Massa. Portions of the States of New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Pen and ink on "JWhatman/Turkey Mill/1856" watermarked wove paper. 18 1/4x22 1/2 inches sheet size; mounted on board stabilizing a vertical crack at center with small losses, moderate staining and edge wear. New York?, 1861
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Additional Details

Samuel B. Massa (1842-1915) was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. In 1860 he received an engineering degree from the Brooklyn Collegiate and Polytechnic Institute which helped propel his career in the United States Navy. During the Civil War, Massa served as paymaster aboard the USS Cayuga, a gunboat which assisted in the taking of New Orleans, and he was active in several other southern engagements. The Special Collections Research Center at Syracuse University acquired Massa's papers in 1966, including an illustrated journal vividly describing his time in the Navy which he re-wrote later in life.

The present map is unrelated to Massa's military career but is a stunning example of cartographic draftsmanship and personal adventurousness - a precise blend of science and humanity. We might assume there was a printed source which served as a model for our hand-drawn map, but such a template is not readily recognizable. The topography is very informative, with counties, towns large and small, rivers, lakes, railroads and canals all in exacting detail. Two faint arrow paths trace the routes of Massa and his hiking companions (blue, during the summer of 1860, as far west as Sparta, New Jersey and Lake Hopatcong; and red, during the summer of 1861, much farther out to Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania).

Adding some intriguing context to our map, the previously mentioned Syracuse papers include a letter from Massa sent from Delaware Water Gap to his mother on July 24th, 1861 - a date which falls exactly in line with the time frame he and his cohort would have been in the area on the second expedition. In that letter Massa describes several friendly encounters, meals planned, and one 45-mile non-stop haul (15 hours) in addition to a small detailed sketch of the Delaware Water Gap.