Map of San Francisco, Showing the location of the different Distributing Reservoirs of The Spring Valley Water Works And the Districts supplied by each.

Cartographer(s): Britton & Rey
Date: 1877
Place: San Francisco
Dimensions: 49.5 x 29 cm (19.5 x 11.5 in)
Condition Rating: VG+

Out of stock

SKU: NL-00665 Category: Tags: ,

Where different San Francisco neighborhoods get their water –  Spring Valley Water Works reservoir distribution map.

Details

This interesting map was originally published in an 1877 San Francisco Municipal Report, which concentrated primarily on the never-ending challenge of bringing water to the expanding population. It plots seven distributing reservoirs within the city, giving their depths, elevations, and supply capacities.

What makes the map especially compelling is that it delineates specifically which areas of the city are supplied by which reservoir, a feature we are unaware of on other maps. The mapmaker has used a simple color scheme to illustrate the limits of each district. Almost the entirety of SOMA is supplied by the College Hill reservoir, except for a small patch of Rincon Hill still supplied by Laguna Honda.

Cartographer(s):

Britton & Rey

Britton & Rey (1852 – 1906) was a lithographic printing firm based in San Francisco and founded by Joseph Britton and Jacques Joseph Rey in 1852. Especially during the second half of the 19th century, Britton and Rey became the leading lithography firm in San Francisco, and probably California. Among their many publications were birds-eye-views of Californian cities, depictions of the exquisite landscapes, stock certificates, and no least maps. While Rey was the primary artist, Britton worked not only as the main lithographer but was essentially also the man running the business. In addition to their own material, the firm reproduced the works of other American artists like Thomas Almond Ayres (1816 – 1858), George Holbrook Baker (1824 – 1906), Charles Christian Nahl (1818 – 1878), and Frederick August Wenderoth (1819 – 1884). Following Rey’s death in 1892 Britton passed the form on to Rey’s son, Valentine J. A. Rey, who ran it until the great earthquake and fire of 1906 destroyed most of the company’s assets.

Joseph Britton (1825 – July 18, 1901) was a lithographer and the co-founder of the prominent San Francisco lithography studio Britton and Rey. He was also a civic leader in San Francisco, serving on the Board of Supervisors and helping to draft a new city charter. In 1852, he became active in lithography and publishing, first under the name ‘Pollard and Britton,’ and then ‘Britton and Rey,’ a printing company founded with his friend and eventual brother-in-law Jacques Joseph Rey. Britton and Rey became the premier lithographic and engraving studio of the Gold Rush era, producing letter sheets, maps, and artistic prints.

Jacques Joseph Rey (1820 – 1892) was a French engraver and lithographer born in the Alsatian town of Bouxwiller. At the age of about 30, he emigrated to America, eventually settling in California. Here, he soon entered into a partnership with local entrepreneur and civic leader Joseph Britton. Three years later, Rey also married Britton’s sister, allowing his business partner and brother-in-law Britton to live in their house with them. Rey and Britton were not only an important part of the San Francisco printing and publishing scene but also owned a plumbing and gas-fitting firm. In the early years, both men would sometimes partner up with others on specific projects, but by the late 1860s, their partnership was more or less exclusive.

Condition Description

Excellent.

References