3.01.2006
keowee key, south carolina map (fred and ann mcglone, 1987)
(#0006) before google maps, mapquest, web mashups or any of the other wonderful mapping tools we have at our disposal in today's digital world, people (of course) still had to get directions, look at maps and find their way to a particular destination. some even drew their own maps. my grandfather was one to always draw the most detailed and to scale maps i have ever seen by one who is not a professional cartographer. of course, map making by hand is a trait many grandfather's carry with them, or so i've heard, its just that the way some interpret the land before them is better than others.
this particular map is one i found in the basement of my house, my grandparents giving directions to their son on how to get to one of their many post-retirement residences. in particular this map is to their home in keowee key, south carolina, just south of salem, sc. they didn't live here very long, and i remember our family visit there--but not as clearly as i would like to--we only visited this residence once.
to the left is my grandmother's handwriting, probably dictating my grandfather's directions because he was too tired to continue with the pencil (he always had those green artist pencils without erasers that varied in hardness, blackness and fine point lying around). in intricate detail, my grandfather goes to the great lengths to include an enlargement of the entrance into their development in the upper right hand corner. his ability to scale and give detailed directions (and have an abundance of those wonderful artist pencils) probably reflects a bit on his 30 plus years spent at general motors as an engineer. i can imagine the life of an engineer in a pre-PC generation to be one with lots of slide rules and human mistakes in process of designing a new technology; to be an engineer at those times was something completely different than what it is today.
over the course of my own life, he has drawn me maps, my father plenty more maps, and countless others i am sure of, for friends and other family. this map was originally on 8" x 10" single sheet paper and digitally scanned for the archive.
this particular map is one i found in the basement of my house, my grandparents giving directions to their son on how to get to one of their many post-retirement residences. in particular this map is to their home in keowee key, south carolina, just south of salem, sc. they didn't live here very long, and i remember our family visit there--but not as clearly as i would like to--we only visited this residence once.
to the left is my grandmother's handwriting, probably dictating my grandfather's directions because he was too tired to continue with the pencil (he always had those green artist pencils without erasers that varied in hardness, blackness and fine point lying around). in intricate detail, my grandfather goes to the great lengths to include an enlargement of the entrance into their development in the upper right hand corner. his ability to scale and give detailed directions (and have an abundance of those wonderful artist pencils) probably reflects a bit on his 30 plus years spent at general motors as an engineer. i can imagine the life of an engineer in a pre-PC generation to be one with lots of slide rules and human mistakes in process of designing a new technology; to be an engineer at those times was something completely different than what it is today.
over the course of my own life, he has drawn me maps, my father plenty more maps, and countless others i am sure of, for friends and other family. this map was originally on 8" x 10" single sheet paper and digitally scanned for the archive.
