FUN WITH MAPS ISSUE 2026-059

By Steve Kovacs (Introduction by Chuck Gibson)

LOVELAND, OH (April 13, 2026) – This edition of Fun with Maps celebrates the author of what is arguably the most important document in U.S. history and he was a POTUS too.

TJ

Happy birthday to Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743)! 

He was the primary author of the Declaration of Independence.  He held many public offices, including being the third US President, Virginia Governor, Ambassador to France, the first Secretary of State, etc.

He aggressively protected the flow of commerce in shipping lanes, including against the Barbary pirates of North Africa.

He has enabled western expansion of the US through the Louisiana purchase from France which about doubled the size of the country in 1803. 

And when the British burned the US Capitol in 1814, including the Library of Congress, Jefferson donated to the Library his personal collection of books of 6000 volumes, which was rather large for the times.

As Jefferson was a Virginian, we present here a map of the state from 1855 by Colton – the map predates the split of West Virginia.

Steve Kovacs and his wife Theresa reside in Loveland, Ohio where they raised their two children. He is a passionate collector of antique maps. Visit his antique map boutique world-on-paper online. Watch for his daily feature Fun with Maps here on Loveland Beacon.