108 Joshua Archer / William Pinnock 1833

William Pinnock was responsible for two county cartographic works: the History and Topography with maps by Neele (see 86); and The Guide to Knowledge printed by R Clay, Printer, 7, Bread-Street-Hill, Cheapside. This latter is unique in the history of county mapping: the maps, engraved mostly by Joshua Archer and Sidney Hall, were cut into a wood block and printed directly so that they appeared white on black. The maps were issued weekly, The Guide to Knowledge appearing in 1833 and 1834 and reissued with altered maps in 1838 when it was probably published by Orlando Hodgson.

The map of Devon, engraved by Archer, appeared on 18th May, 1833 on pages 417/418 followed by the description of the county on pages 419/420. Many later printings present a crack effect through Barnstaple; possibly caused by uneven paper during printing (see illustration).

The maps reappeared individually with attractive added title panels in 1844 when published by Shepherd and Sutton with R Groombridge in their series of Descriptive County Maps. Below the map and on reverse is a text: Historical Sketch Of The County Of Devon. The maps were printed in relief in pale brown ink and then coloured by hand in red (railway), green (parks), orange (turnpikes) and blue (boundary). Later they were reissued twice in atlas format as black on white maps by Thomas Johnson. All later issues were lithographs.

Archer (b. circa 1792) was a copperplate printer, cartographer and a prolific engraver who executed a number of county maps between 1833 and 1847: in the 1830s he produced these unusual maps for William Pinnock; most of the maps for the British Magazine (118A, completed 1841-1844); maps for Thomas Dugdale’s Curiosities of Great Britain (119); and the early maps for Henry Fisher (see 120). In addition, he engraved maps of Scotland for Robert Wilkinson (1814, one of his earliest known works), rail road maps (for Drake, 1838) and of London (Smith, 1847).

Joshua Archer was actually born in Barnstaple. He presumably moved to London at an early age and was living there in 1835 when he was declared bankrupt. According to the 1841 census we know he was married to Jane and had one son. A few years later he was in prison for debt (1845). From 1839 to 1861 he was registered at 2 Southampton Terrace, Islington. When he died in 1863 he was probably living with his wife and their two sons, John and Albert, and the latter's wife and children.¹

Size: 165 x 225 mm.                                                                                                                                                English Miles (15 = 33 mm).

DEVONSHIRE with imprint: London. W Edwards, 12 Ave Maria Lane. The arms of Devonshire with motto Semper Fidelis (Ae). Signature: J. Archer sc. 100 Drummond Str Euston Sq. (Ee). Longitude W. from Greenwich (EeOS) embedded with latitude and longitude in plain double line frame. It has the plate number No. LV.], title GUIDE TO KNOWLEDGE and PRICE ONE PENNY to right of map frame, ie across top of page as the map was bound in sideways. No roads in surrounding counties.