A new map of North America

Colonial-era maps served multiple purposes beyond simply indicating boundaries. This map includes text with British political commentary, noting French “Incroachment” and emphasizing the need for British colonial officials to monitor land claims along the Mississippi River. Ten inset diagrams of major ports, including Boston alongside Caribbean, Latin American, and other North American harbors, depict active sites of slave labor. Imperial jostling over land and labor connected colonial Boston to the wider world. Notice the glimpse of Ireland and Great Britain in the map’s top right corner. This small detail illustrates the vast reach of the British Empire and serves as a reminder of how political changes rippling across the Atlantic could affect territories thousands of miles apart.