123. John Emslie / James Reynolds 1848

Although the publisher of only one important English county cartographic work, Reynolds's Travelling Atlas, James Reynolds had an enormous output of all types of maps over a career that spanned approximately 30 years. Born in London in 1817 he was himself the son of a printer. He was married in 1845 to Mary Gilbert and some of his first works are from the same year, e.g. a book on the solar system and a new map of London. By 1851 he was registered as a publisher with premises at 174 Strand, London. In 1874 he was proposed by Edward Stanford and others as a member of the RGS. He published a wide variety of cartographic material and music as well as advertising himself as bookseller, copperplate printer, printseller and music-seller. He was registered at the same address at the Strand until his death in 1876. His business continued as James Reynolds & Sons into the twentieth century under his sons William Henry and Frederick while his daughter, Alice Mary, worked for them as a chromolithographic artist.

Many of Reynolds' works were engraved by Ernest George Ravenstein and by John Emslie (1813-75). Emslie was a cartographer, draughtsman and engraver and was in business from c.1841 (census entry) and was elected to the Royal Geographical Society in 1863 (proposed by John Walker and others).  He traded as J Emslie & Sons between 1869 and 1875 and was succeeded by his two sons, William Roland and John Philip (who were still in business as late as 1899).¹ It was Emslie who engraved the maps for Reynolds' Travelling Atlas of England which later became Geological Atlas of Great Britain; the maps he engraved being based on the maps of Sidney Hall (101).

When Reynolds' county atlas first appeared the original maps had no geological information. This was added in 1860 together with a detailed text. The plate of these maps were used for intaglio printing from 1848-1860. From c.1860 lithographic transfers were used and, indeed, continued in use until at least 1927, in successive editions of Reynolds's Travelling or Portable Atlas and Reynolds's Geological Atlas before the publication of Stanford's Geological Atlas of Great Britain by H B Woodward. When the atlas was issued in 1903 the map of Devon had a second table of New Series Ordnance maps (Ad) superimposed on an index map of Devon (22 x 20 mm) as well as the table of the Old Series (Da, but retitled) and Stanford’s imprint: London. Edward Stanford. 12, 13 & 14, Long Acre, W.C.

Size: 175 x 235 mm.                                                                                                                                       ENGLISH MILES (16 =  40 mm).

DEVONSHIRE. Signature: Drawn & Engraved by John Emslie. (AeOS).  Imprint: Published by J Reynolds 174 Strand. (CeOS). Plate 10 (EeOS). Railways to Plymouth Earl, Crediton, and Tiverton from Tiverton Junc. Note: Ringmore occurs twice, and South Huish is mistaken for Thurleston (sic).

[1]  Worms and Baynton-Williams; British Map Engravers; see entries for Reynolds (p. 550ff) and Emslie (p. 216); Rare Book Society; 2011.