In many respects early Pennsylvania was the prototype of North American development. Its conservative defense of liberal individualism, its population of mixed national and religious origins, its dispersed farms, county seats, and farm-service villages, and its mixed crop and livestock agriculture served as models for much of the rural Middle West. To many western Europeans in the eighteenth century, life in early Pennsylvania offered a veritable paradise and refuge from oppression. Some called it "the best poor man's country in the world."

The role of cultural backgrounds is important in this study of the development of early southeastern Pennsylvania, and as important is the interplay of people with the land. Lemon discusses the settlement of the land by western Europeans; the geographical and social mobility of the people; territorial organizations of farmlands, towns, and counties; and regional variations in land use, especially farming practices. Providing deeper access into the processes of social change, "The Best Poor Man's Country" remains a significant addition to the literature on colonial American historiography.

Within its ancient boundaries, Staffordshire is a county of diverse and contrasting historic landscapes. World-renowned industrial complexes sit alongside agricultural systems; castles rub shoulders with urban-industrial housing; the cathedral centre of a vast diocese lies close to the birthplace of primitive Methodism; overtly planned landscapes mingle with the uplands of the Moorlands and the heathlands of Cannock Chase. These many and varied landscapes are both products and reflections of a multiplicity of histories, and students of the county have been keen to explore and relate these pasts. However, no systematic attempt has previously been made to express these accounts in spatial form. This book seeks to demonstrate by maps the various histories that contribute to the diversity of Staffordshire. With its succinct discussions and detailed map presentations of these themes, incorporating new thinking and recent research, the atlas provides an innovative and major contribution to the study of the history of Staffordshire. -- .

The Sutil and Mexicana sailed along the coast of the Pacific Northwest in 1792, their stated mission to put to rest the persistent rumors of the mythical strait connecting the Pacific and Atlantic in the neighborhood of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the present-day border of Canada and the United States. This would be the last Spanish exploration along the Pacific Coast after 250 years of primacy in charting those waters.Commanded by Dionisio Alcalea Galiano and Cayento Valdes y Flores, and inaugurated by Alejandro Malaspina, the voyage is the origin of our knowledge of part of the coast of British Columbia and its inhabitants. The two ships stopped and spent time at Nootka prior to exploring in detail the coastline inside the Strait of Juan de Fuca and north of Vancouver, Canada. Called the definitive account of the voyage by Donald Cutter, noted expert on the Spanish explorations. Through painstaking research, the translator and editor identified the original manuscript account of the voyage, most likely prepared Galiano. It varies significantly from the account published in Spain in 1802, and translated into English by Cecil Jane in 1930. The variances are carefully noted and accounted for by the editor. Considerable ethnological data are included in the document. The ships had frequent contacts with the indigenous people along the coast, noting variations in their language, their trading techniques, their fear, friendliness or hostility towards the vessels and crew. George Vancouver was conducting his explorations at the same time as the Sutil and Mexicana, and the two parties joined for several days to make cooperative surveys and share information. Vancouver and his second in command, Puget, entertained the Spaniards on his ship Discovery several evenings, and their relations were extremely cordial. The Drawings of Jose Cardero, an artist assigned to the expedition, depicting the natives and landscapes were a major contribution to the voyage account. Thirteen of his drawings are included in the book, in addition to portraits of the two captains and maps of the voyage. An extensive introduction is provided giving an historical background to the voyage, the history of the original published account, and a careful analysis of the document now published. Short biographies of the major participants are also provided. A glossary of place names identifying present-day terms for the Spanish locations named in the document is added for reference. Two appendices containing letters regarding preparation of the voyage account and the ship manifests also supplement the text.

When English naturalist Joseph Banks (1743-1820) accompanied Captain James Cook (1728-1779) on his historic mission into the Pacific, the Endeavour voyage of 1768-1771, he took with him a team of collectors and illustrators. They returned with unprecedented collections of artifacts and specimens of stunning birds, fish, and other animals, as well as thousands of plants, most seen for the first time in Europe. They produced, too, remarkable landscape and figure drawings of the peoples encountered on the voyage along with detailed journals and descriptions of the places visited, which, with the first detailed maps of these lands (Tahiti, New Zealand, and the east coast of Australia), were later used to create lavishly illustrated accounts of the mission. These caused a storm of interest in Europe where plays, poems, and satirical caricatures were later produced to celebrate and examine the voyage, its personnel, and many "new" discoveries. Along with contemporary portraits of key personalities aboard the ship, scale models and plans of the ship itself, scientific instruments taken on the voyage, commemorative medals and sketches, the objects (over 140) featured in this book tell the story of the Endeavour voyage and its impact ahead of the 250th anniversary in 2018 of the launch of this seminal mission. Artwork made both during and after the voyage will be seen alongside actual specimens. By comparing the voyage originals with the often stylized engravings later produced in London for the official account, Endeavouring Banks investigates how knowledge gained on the mission was gathered, revised, and later received in Europe. Items that had been separated in some cases for more than two centuries are brought together to reveal their fascinating history not only during but since that mission. Original voyage specimens are featured together with illustrations and descriptions of them, showing a rich diversity of newly discovered species and how Banks organized this material, planning but ultimately failing to publish it. In fact, many of the objects in the book have never been published before. Focusing on the contribution of Banks's often neglected artists--Sydney Parkinson, Herman Diedrich Sporing, and Alexander Buchan, as well as the priest Tupaia, who joined Endeavour in the Society Islands--none of whom survived the mission, the surviving Endeavour voyage illustrations are the most important body of images produced since Europeans entered this region, matching the truly historic value of the plant specimens and artifacts that will be seen alongside them.

Using nearly five hundred historical maps and many other illustrations - from rough sketches drawn in the field to commercial maps to beautifully rendered works of art - this lavishly illustrated volume is the first to tell the story of California's past from a unique visual perspective. Covering five hundred years of history, it offers a compelling and informative look at the transformation of the state from before European contact through the Gold Rush and up to the present. The maps are accompanied by a concise, engaging narrative and by extended captions that elucidate the stories and personalities behind their creation. At once a valuable reference and an exhilarating adventure through history, the "Historical Atlas of California", featuring many rare and unusual maps, will be a treasured addition to any library. Distilling an enormous amount of information into one volume, it presents a fascinating chronicle of how California came to be what it is today.