22. First Geological Map of Canada (1864)

First Geological Map of Canada

The first geological map of Canada was completed by William Logan in 1864 and published the following year as part of an atlas that complemented the Geological Survey of Canada’s massive and much-heralded Report of Progress from its Commencement to 1863, also known as Geology of Canada.

The map, at a scale of 1 inch to 125 miles, shows not only the geology of the Province of Canada, which at the time comprised what is now southern Quebec and Ontario, but also much of the pre-Confederation Maritimes, as well as Newfoundland and the northeastern United States.

The atlas announced plans for systematic geological mapping of Canada at a scale of 1 inch to 4 miles. This was a massive commitment, given the subsequent growth of Canada. It is a task that remains a core mission of the Survey to this day.

Logan completed a larger scale version of the map in 1866. It was published as two sheets at a scale of 1 inch to 25 miles in 1869. Although its publication followed Confederation by 18 months, the map retained the pre-1867 boundaries.

Category: Maps

Decade: 1860s

References

Logan, W.E., 1864. Geological map of Canada and the adjacent regions, including parts of other British provinces and of the United States; Geological Survey of Canada, Multicoloured Geological Map 53, scale 1:7 920 000. doi:10.4095/133901

Logan, W.E., 1869. Geological map of Canada and the adjacent regions, including parts of other British provinces and of the United States; Geological Survey of Canada, Multicoloured Geological Map 65, scale 1:1 584 000. doi:10.4095/220748

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