1891 Bird's Eye Map of Houston

This is a BIG Map Not only is this a fantastic view of Houston on the cusp of going from large town to major city, it's also really big. How big? It measures an inch under four feet across. That actually makes it just a bit larger than the original. 45 by 24 inches. It's also incredibly rare. Only the Amon Carter Museum and Library of Congress hold copies.  Houston: population 28,000 As I said, Houston was on the eve of explosive growth. Before the next census, the population of the Bayou City would grow by sixty percent percent. Though the ship channel was still two decades away, shallow draft vessels could already bring their cargoes up from Gulf right to the foot of Main Street. In the late nineteenth century, cities commissioned birds-eye views like this as promotional materials. No expense was spared on this one. The city fathers went full color, which at the time meant chromolithography, a pricey and technically demanding upgrade from the standard black and white. Ea