This careful study of eighteenth-century cartography along the Gulf Coast presents a pair of essays that show a fascinating mix of cooperation and competition between Spain and France.
A native Canadian, Louis Juchereau de Saint-Denis explored much of the region around the Gulf in 1714 and 1717. He sent data to his homeland of France, but he also shared information with Spanish officials. Jack Jackson and Robert S. Weddle present three previously unpublished maps, drawn by Juan Manuel de Olivan Rebolledo, which followed Saint-Denis's information. Olivan's fourth map, published in 1718,...