Mapping Pennsylvania 2

Mapping Pennsylvania

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Explore the region and its development before, during, and after William Penn founded Pennsylvania and Philadelphia. Select any map or begin a chronological journey.

Mapping Pennsylvania

Coaquannock 1934

Indigenous Lands c. 1550

New SWEDEN 1639

Establishing Philadelphia 1683

America’s City 1777

Completing PA 1792

Walking Purchase 1737

Indigenous Lands c. 1550

VIEW Map Credits HERE

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• William Penn’s sons and former secretary defrauded the Lenape out of a million acres in the Delaware and Lehigh Valleys.

Map of the conceded area by John Chapman

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A Mapp of ye Improved Part of Pensilvania...by Thomas Holme

Map Credits

1. Indian Trails in the Colonial Period, modern illustration by Michael Siegel (Rutgers University).
2. Philadelphia Region When Known as Coaquannock..., offset lithograph, WPA (Edward Cacchione, Bernard Mion, The Philadelphia City Planning Commission), 1934 (Atwater Kent Collection, 44.81.82)
3. Caert vande Svydt Rivier in Niew Nederland, pen-and-ink and watercolor, Joan Vinckeboons, 1639 (Library of Congress).
4. A Portraiture of the City of Philadelphia in the Province of Pennsylvania in America, engraving on vellum, Thomas Holme (London: Andrew Sowle), 1683 (Atwater Kent Collection, 91.98.47).
5. A Mapp of ye Improved Part of Pensilvania in America, Divided Into Countyes, Townships, and Lotts, engraving, Thomas Holme (surveyor), John Harris (engraver) (London: P. Lea), c. 1687 (Atwater Kent Collection, 56.10.4).
6. Area Acquired by the Walking Purchase of 1737, modern illustration (Ray Thompson).
7. A Plan of the City and Environs of Philadelphia, colored engraving, Matthäus Albrecht Lotter, Germany (engraver and publisher), 1777 (Atwater Kent Collection, 61.13.1).
8. A Map of the State of Pennsylvania, Reading Howell (London: James Phillips), 1792 (David Rumsey Historical Map Collection)

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• By the time of the American Revolution, Philadelphia had spread far beyond the original grid. It was the largest city outside London in the British Empire, with about 34,000 residents.

Map by Nicholas Scull and George Heap

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Map of Philadelphia by Thomas Holme

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A Map of the State of Pennsylvania by Reading Howell

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• This map shows a reconstruction of the region known as Coaquannock, or “Grove of Tall Pines,” home of the Lenape.

• Illustrated in detail are Indigenous villages, location names, streams, and islands.

• Many of these Indigenous names are still used in Philadelphia, including Passyunk (In the Valley), Manayunk (The Place We Go to Drink), and Wissahickon (from Wisahickin; Cat-Fish Stream).

Scan to find the Indigenous land you occupy.

Map by WPA, 1934

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Map of Svydt Rivier in New Sweden by Joan Vinckeboons

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Modern Illustration by Michael Siegel