Harbor chart · 1858

The Coast Survey chart of 1858

Preliminary chart of Charleston Harbor and its approaches

The harbor as the Confederacy inherited it, surveyed by the government that was about to be fired on. Most of the wartime harbor maps that follow are drawn from this survey, and the soundings and channels on them are these.

It is also the chart that explains the siege. The deep channel runs past Sumter and Moultrie, which is why the forts are where they are and why the Federal fleet spent two years trying to get past them.

What is on the sheet

  • soundings
  • channels and bars
  • the harbor forts
  • the shoreline before the war

Places

Fort Sumter

The record

Title, as catalogedPreliminary chart of Charleston Harbor and its approaches
Title used hereThe Coast Survey chart of 1858
MakerUnited States Coast Survey; A. D. Bache, Superintendent; C. O. Boutelle; engraved by Julius Bien
Date, as cataloged1858
KindHarbor chart
Medium1 map : hand colored
Dimensions79 x 80 cm
CollectionGeography and Map Division
Call numberG3912.C4P5 1858 .U51
Image served byLibrary of Congress
RightsPublic domain
Rights statement, verbatimThe content of the Library of Congress Geography and Map Division digitized collections is free to use and reuse unless a Rights Advisory statement is present that indicates otherwise. Credit Line: Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division.
Credit lineLibrary of Congress, Geography and Map Division
Catalog recordhttps://www.loc.gov/item/2003623102/
Last verified2026-08-30

Read the sheet at the repository