Old Map of the Nation's Capital, 1938: USA, Chesapeake Bay, Washington DC, Baltimore, Annapolis, Richmond

2026-03-26T01:27:12+00:00

Price: 0.00 - 1975.00 (36 variants)

Historic and Scenic Reaches of the Nation's Capital is a spirited 1938 celebration of the Chesapeake heartland, where the sweep of geography is enlivened by history’s most resonant voices. Along the crown of the composition, portraits of eight founding fathers preside like a national frieze, their steady gazes framing a panorama of vignettes that mark decisive places in the American story. From the tidal gleam of Chesapeake Bay to the federal avenues of Washington, D.C., the map turns the mid-Atlantic into a stage, alive with monuments, battlegrounds, and storied estates. It is at once a guide and a gallery, arranging landmarks like bright constellations in a firmament of waterways, towns, and counties.

Created by the National Geographic Society, this map bears the hallmarks of the Society’s golden age of cartography—factual precision married to painterly storytelling. National Geographic’s artists and geographers designed their maps to be read and admired, rendering history accessible through pictorial scenes and crisply annotated geography. Rich, harmonious color blocks emphasize land and water, while decorative cartouches and informative notes knit archival memory to modern sightseeing. Ornate borders, alive with intricate scrollwork and patriotic motifs, transform the frame into a narrative device, guiding the eye from portrait to vignette, and from the nation’s founding ideals to the lived terrain that shaped them.

At its center the Chesapeake Bay breathes in broad, tidal strokes, flanked by the Eastern Shore and the peninsulas of Virginia, with capes and inlets named like chapters of a maritime epic. The Potomac, Patuxent, Severn, and Susquehanna rivers carve graceful corridors toward their estuaries, while to the south the James, York, and Rappahannock trace Virginia’s colonial lifelines. State lines and county divisions are rendered with satisfying clarity, revealing the administrative skeleton beneath the region’s natural embroidery. The Blue Ridge rises faintly to the west, a protective backdrop to tidewater plains and fertile valleys. Taken together, these features locate the viewer in a living geography—navigable, productive, and inseparable from the nation’s earliest endeavors.

The urban constellation glows: Washington, D.C. anchors the narrative with its Capitol, Mall, and memorials, while across the Potomac, Alexandria’s wharves and cobbled streets recall a mercantile past. Northward, Baltimore’s harbor and Fort McHenry evoke the War of 1812 and a star-spangled anthem; eastward, Annapolis parades the State House and Naval Academy, threads of continuity in a seafaring culture. Richmond, with its neoclassical capitol, stands as Virginia’s political lodestar. Routes of travel—arterial highways, rail lines, and well-trodden byways—bind these cities into a coherent journey. Insets and vignettes spotlight Mount Vernon and Monticello, Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown, scenes where colonial ambition, revolution, and republican leadership forged a national identity.

Across the top register, the founding fathers’ portraits—among them George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and Alexander Hamilton—compose a dignified pantheon that humanizes the surrounding landscape. Their presence sets a tone of civic inheritance, while the pictorial scenes below translate principle into place. Each emblem, border flourish, and inset contributes to a chorus of national pride without sacrificing geographic intelligence. Issued on the cusp of a new global era, the map reflects interwar America’s cultivated reverence for history and its delight in exploration. It invites a slow, attentive reading—tracing rivers, following roads, pausing at forts and domes—until the Chesapeake becomes not only a region, but the narrative backbone of a nation.

Cities and towns on this map

Washington, D.C.

Baltimore, Maryland

Richmond, Virginia

Alexandria, Virginia

Annapolis, Maryland

Notable Features & Landmarks

Portraits of eight founding fathers along the top.

Vignettes depicting significant places in American history.

Lakes, rivers, and other significant bodies of water like the Chesapeake Bay.

Major roads and transportation routes.

State borders and county divisions.

Decorative borders with intricate designs.

Insets showcasing landmarks.

Historical and design context

Date created: 1938.

Mapmaker/Publisher: National Geographic Society.

National Geographic context: Known for promoting geography, exploration, and cultural understanding, often employing artists and cartographers to create engaging maps.

Topics and themes: Historical significance, scenic beauty, and important monuments related to American history in the Chesapeake area.

Themes of national pride and heritage reflected through portraits of pivotal figures in American history.

Design/style: Pictorial and thematic, rich in color and detail, with ornate borders and decorative cartouches.

Historical significance: Blends geography and American history, emphasizing the importance of the Chesapeake region in the nation's founding and growth.

Please double check the images to make sure that a specific town or place is shown on this map. You can also get in touch and ask us to check the map for you.

This map looks great at every size, but I always recommend going for a larger size if you have space. That way you can easily make out all of the details.

This map looks amazing at sizes all the way up to 100in (250cm). If you are looking for a larger map, please get in touch.

Please note: the labels on this map are hard to read if you order a map that is 20in (50cm) or smaller. The map is still very attractive, but if you would like to read the map easily, please buy a larger size.

The model in the listing images is holding the 16x20in (40x50cm) version of this map.