Friends of the Georgia Archives, Inc.

Fund

 

September 2, 2008 marks the 200^th anniversary of a remarkable map created by Daniel Sturges: A plan of Milledgeville, the Capital and permanent seat of government of the State of Georgia. The creation of Milledgeville was an early attempt in Georgia to provide equal access to government by geographically centralizing the capital city. The map itself is a cartographic treasure that includes unique information about the extent of wetlands, distribution of land owners, and the layout of the city itself.

 

 

No doubt Mr. Sturges believed his map—like the new capital city—would last forever, but his optimism was disappointed.  Due to heavy use and poor storage conditions prior to its transfer to the Georgia Archives, the map has become severely damaged.  It is hand-drawn on handmade paper and mounted on linen canvas with a wooden dowel at the bottom edge.  There was likely a dowel at the top edge as well, since there are visible nail holes in the cloth.  The map is heavily soiled and has numerous horizontal creases from being rolled for many years.  Previous repair attempts have caused brown staining, and there are numerous large tears and areas of loss.  It cannot be used or exhibited in its current extremely fragile condition.

 

Fortunately, the map is not beyond repair.  An Atlanta area paper conservator examined the map and proposed that it could be carefully cleaned, locally humidified to flatten the numerous curled fragments, and then repaired.  Fragments will be removed from the cloth backing and repaired, then reassembeld with Japanese paper and wheat starch paste.  Finally, the map will be lined with Japanes paper for additional strength and matted for display and storage.  The proposed treatment is meant to physically stabilize the map, not restore it so it "looks like new".  The treatment will be aesthetically pleasing, and can be reversed if necessary in the future.

 

 

Now the Friends are supporting the conservation of this beautiful treasure.  Your special contribution to FOGA’s Conservation Fund will help preserve the Milledgeville map and other archives treasure for future generations. Send your tax-deductible contribution to the Friends of the Georgia Archives, P.O. Box 711, Morrow, GA 30260. 

 

Slideshow: pictures of before treatment and during treatment