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Description

Fascinating pictorial map of Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, attributed to Ernest Dudly Chase and first issued in 1949, which would later be revised by his wife, Clara Chase in 1956 and circa 1960.

Fine pictographic map of the Cape Cod area, including Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, Falmouth, Hyannis, Plymouth, Provincetown, and Chatham. The map depicts bird's-eye images of major sites and attractions, the Cape Cod Canal, highways, railroads, beaches, boats, seagulls, beachgoers, and lighthouses. Also featured are Plymouth Rock, the "Good Ship Mayflower," and Martha's Vineyard State Park.

Inset illustrations of historic buildings and tourist attractions such as Brewster's Old Windmill and "A Bit of Provincetown" decorate the upper, lower and right margins. Other decorative embellishments include a compass rose with a rope border surmounted by an anchor, and a cartouche flanked by pine needles, vines, and a codfish. This map, first copyrighted 1949 and 1956, was printed in small, medium and large sizes, in various editions, with alternate titles. Editions showing "President Kennedy's Summer Home" were apparently published after 1960.

The smaller edition, titled A Picture Chart of Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, has a printed credit "designed and drawn by Clara K. Chase." Clara was the third wife of Ernest Dudley Chase, a prolific maker of pictorial maps during the mid 20th century, some of which were published by Trina Publishing or the Atlantic Card Company in Massachusetts, where the Chases lived. The Harvard Map Collection has the same map of Cape Cod with Ernest Dudley Chase's manuscript signature, however, their copy was published by Trina Publishing with no copyright and no mention of Clara. The only change appears to be Clara's addition of the words, "Cape Cod National Seashore." Based on the description of the Plymouth Plantation in the upper left, the Harvard curators have concluded that Ernest's original map dates from after 1948 and is probably c. 1950, while Clara's version probably was issued between 1956 and 1961.

There is great uncertainty about Clara's role in Ernest's work. Some believe she took over updating and publishing the maps when Ernest was older, which would account for this Cape Cod map being issued in her name. That's not the only mystery about the couple that will probably never be explained; in Ernest's map of New York there is a small figure in a pond, labeled upside down in shadowy letters "Clara Katrina Holland." Ernest would marry Clara several decades later.