Explore the colorful world of historic atlases and maps from the New Jersey Room's collection. Each week during Summer Learning Program we will highlight a rarely seen item.

The 19th century saw the United States asserting some level of control over all of North and South America, as set forth in the Monroe Doctrine. This 1897 atlas compiling current and historical maps of a contested region of South America is a tangible example of that authority. 

The Orinoco-Essequibo region, defined by the confluence of those two rivers, is covered in dense tropical rainforest, difficult for human access. The boundaries between the European colonies that became Venezuela and Guyana were ill defined across this inhospitable region. Discovery of gold in the late 19th century drove conflict over the boundary line and ultimately brought in the US as representative of Venezuelan interests.

While the settlement of 1899 largely favored Guyanese/British claims, US involvement produced extensive research documentation, including this atlas which compiles numerous historical maps of the area, region and hemisphere. It serves as a wonderful survey of the history of maps of the colonial European “New World.” 

Venezuela revived claims to the region in the 1960s, and again in the 21st century as oil was discovered in the area. While Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was dissuaded from use of force in 2024, the issue remains unresolved. 

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