Falmouth Harbour - Vintage map, Norman B. Leventhal Collection nautical chart

Des Barres' second state of the Falmouth Harbour chart is displayed here. This state differs from the first with the addition of dark relief shading to emphasize the topography, and the addition of soundings (measurements of depths) in the harbor. The tall pines which grew in the Maine forest were perfect for fashioning into ships' masts, and numerous sawmills were established around the region. Inland lumber was transported to the docks via "mast-roads," and roads leading to the port are illustrated in this second edition. Ultimately, Falmouth was destroyed by the British in October 1775, in an act of retaliation for a deadly uprising by the colonists at Machias, Maine, four months earlier.
Courtesy of Boston Public Library