A Map of Mexico, Louisiana and the Missouri Territory
John Hamilton Robinson, 1819, Washington, E. de Krafft, 66.5” x 76.8”

VERY RARE

When Zebulon Pike set out from St. Louis to explore the lands acquired under the Louisiana purchase, he was accompanied by a young physician, John Hamilton Robinson. Robinson was a driving force within the expedition, with some suggestions that he wrote most of the report. Robinson made several other expeditions to Mexico, where he was an active participant in the Mexican revolt, and was appointed brigadier general of the Mexican forces. Returning with several manuscript maps in 1818, Robinson issued a prospectus for a map of Mexico and Louisiana. This epoch map was released in 1819, shortly before Robinson’s death. Robinson’s involvement in the revolution and production of a map appears to be related to his political interest in the area. Most notable is his careful documentation of the conflicting boundary claims of the U.S. and Spain to the Louisiana Territory. He shows Spain’s claim to most of the Mississippi Valley , and the United State’s claim to the Rio Grande and north. He also highlights the compromise boundary established that very year in the Adams-Onis Treaty. This map shows for the first time the territories in the dispute. The Adams-Onis boundary is the one the Republic of Texas later claimed in its dispute with the U.S. (see 1842 Sabine River survey).