A general map of North America: from the latest observations.

Little is known about John Lodge beyond that he was a London engraver of the middle and late eighteenth century. His maps appeared in many popular periodicals as well as in books, and before his death in 1796 he produced a general atlas of Great Britain. This large copperplate map shows the British view of their colonies at the time of the American Revolution. It provides many details about the frontier wilderness of Wisconsin, including locations mentioned by French cartographers and early travelers; to decipher its odd place names, use the Dictionary of Wisconsin History linked at left. The mythical islands in Lake Superior are a hold-over from earlier French cartographers, who made them up to honor their government patrons; the large triangular table at the lower right gives distances between American cities. Click "Zoom & Pan" to see its many details.