Map of the City of Providence, Rhode Island (1896)

      Sampson, Murdock & Co. was a woman owned business directory and map publisher (Mary O. Sampson) whose later 19th c. city directories were widely distributed in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Sampson, Murdock & Co. inserted detailed, color lithographed maps into the directories that were both for business and for travel. The map at hand appears to have been published independently as a stand alone map. Therefore all points of transportation connections for both freight and passenger rail were shown. Concentric circles drawn on the map permit a pedestrian to measure the distance from the center of Providence from zone to zone.
       The Map of the City of Providence, Rhode Island 1896 was originally a folded map, and on the back of this map is a printed panel that appeared as the cover of the map when it was in its properly folded state. That cover reads: "Daniel Watson, Established 1876, Real Estate Agent. Southern Rhode Island Property A Specialty." He lists his offices in Newport, R.I., and Ferry Wharf, Jamestown, Conanicut Island, R.I.. The scope of his real estate agency included furnished cottages, marine building sites and "Farms of all Descriptions."
      In a style recognizable today's real estate advertisements, this 1896 Watson advertisement of his listings explains "Several Magnificent  Estates for Sale in Newport and Vicinity." Daniel Watson appears to have had a premier  agency as he advertises that he is "Sole Agent for all the Desirable Plated Property at Jamestown." And to take our breath away, he posts the price of seasonal Jamestown rentals of furnished cottages: "$200 to $1000" for the summer season.
      This Map of the City of Providence, Rhode Island 1896 is thus a map, and an example of real estate business ephemera describing real estate that remains highly desirable today as a residence and for vacation travel.