Civil War Map of Washington

I found myself perusing the historical displays in the Gallaudet library today, and I came across this fascinating map.

I wish my regular camera battery hadn't died today so I could have gotten a real picture, something legible, but this will have to do for now. I must have spent a good 15 minutes peering at this map, bent over the glass case (without putting weight on it) and looking back and forth between the key and the map itself.

I just love history and historical maps. It's fascinating to see how much - and how little - has changed since this map was originally created. Some changes are minor, like we now call the Executive Mansion the White House; others are much bigger, like the presence of a jail directly east of the Capitol! That's where the Supreme Court sits now, but that building wasn't created until the 1930s.

There's a nice little magnifier sitting on the map itself...wish I could have taken it to look more closely at things.