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1895 Map of
Alaska. Source: 1895 U.S. Atlas. |
Map of the 1899 Route
The map showing the
Elder's course was prepared using maps published by
the United States Coast Survey and the U. S. Geological
Survey. Geographer Henry Gannett traced the route onto an
existing document.
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The route of
the Harriman Alaska Expedition of 1899. By Henry
Gannett and the U. S. Geological Survery. Source:
Library of Congress. |
Glacial Maps
Map artist Gilbert Thompson drew
the map showing the Hubbard and Turner Glaciers at the head
of Disenchantment Bay, near Yakutat. The map is based on
surveys made by Henry Gannett on June 21 and 22, 1899;
Thompson gleaned additional information on the glaciers from
the Canadian International Boundary Commission.
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The Hubbard
and Turner Glaciers, 1899. By Gilbert Thompson.
Source: Library of Congress |
The Columbia Glacier in Prince William Sound was surveyed by
G. K. Gilbert from June 25 to 28, 1899. Gilbert took
readings from the lower end of the glacier, and drew upon
mineralogist Charles Palache's study of the details of the
area. The map shows the bay at high tide; at low tide,
Heather Island is joined to islands north of it by mud
flats, and extensive shoals are bared along the northeast
coast of the bay.
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Columbia
Glacier, 1899. By Gilbert Thompson. Source:
National Archives. |
By 1899, Muir Glacier had been studied, photographed and
charted for decades. This map, prepared by Henry Gannett
during the Harriman Expedition, draws on almost twenty years
of description and survey to show the position of the front
of the glacier at various dates. The chart lines show that
the glacier had retreated 1.6 miles in nineteen years, with
one period of advancement taking place between 1890 and
1892.
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Map of
northern part of Muir Glacier. Source: National
Archives. |
Harriman Railroad Map 1900
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Within a year
of the Alaska Expedition, E. H. Harriman's railway
empire stretched 25,000 miles, from Illinois to
California. He owned and operated the Illinois
Central, Southern Pacific and Union Pacific lines,
and attempted to gain control of the Burlington,
but in this he did not succeed. Source: Rutledge
Historical Atlas. |
Chart of Lands and Coasts
Chart of Lands and Coasts
Click image for a larger view
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"More than a century ago Malaspina, the
Spanish navigator, entered Yakutat Bay in search of the Northwest
Passage. Sailing up the bay and finding that open water extended
far inland, he for a time thought that for him had been reserved
the fame and satisfaction of discovering the long- sought route
through the North American continent. His dream was short, however,
for on nearing the bend at the bay he found his way blocked by
a solid wall of ice. This ice was the front of the combined Hubbard
and Turner Glaciers." |
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"At eight o'clock last
evening Mr. Harriman, Dr. Moore, Grinnell, Trudeau
and I landed on Muir Glacier and set out afoot to
visit a valley which Muir calls Hollowing Valley,
and Reed on his map Endicott Valley. It is a narrow
valley on the southeast edge of Muir Glacier and
about eighteen miles from shore. At first we
clamored over the exceedingly singular lateral
moraine for several miles, going up and down on
slippery masses of partly buried ice." |
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For information on the Harriman Retraced Expedition e-mail: harriman2001@science.smith.edu |