Christopher Lane, PBS “Antiques Roadshow” appraiser and owner of the Philadelphia Print Shop West (located in Denver, Colorado) will give the 2017 Holzheimer “Maps & America” Lecture on Thursday, April 13 at 6 p.m. in the American Geographical Society Library, located in the third floor east wing of the UWM Golda Meir Library, 2311 E. Hartford Ave.
The title of Lane’s presentation is “Flows of Illusion: Waterways to the Pacific.”
For three and a half centuries, from the earliest days of the discovery of North America, the notion of a water passage across the continent was an idée fixe for many explorers, geographers, and politicians.
In the sixteenth century, there was thought to be but a narrow land bridge between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans,and even when the vast size of the interior of North America became known, many still believed that there was some system of rivers and lakes, with short portages, which would offer a practical channel to reach the western coast.
These postulated and hoped for mythical waterways were a product of misinformation, misinterpretations of reports and observations, and just plain wishful thinking and it wasn’t until the middle of the nineteenth century that the absence of any practical watercourse across North America was established once and for all.
This lecture is a look at the theories and searches for these flows of illusions, quests which did not realize the hopes of the seekers, but did help unfold the physical reality of the continent.
This will be the 28th “Maps & America” lecture, supported by an endowment created by Arthur and Janet Holzheimer.
A reception at 5:30 p.m. precedes the talk, which is free and open to the public.
For more information or special needs, call 414-229-6282 or email agsl@uwm.edu