Cartographic development of the Atlas of Canada

Summary

This paper reviews the complete cartographic development process of the National Atlas of Canada. In 1949, the Canadian Government decided to produce a new national atlas, establishing a Federal Atlas Committee with subcommittees responsible for data collection in various fields. Cartographic work was officially assigned to the Surveys and Mapping Branch in 1954. The paper elaborates on key decisions in atlas production, including base map colour treatment, selection of scale systems (1:2.5 million to 1:50 million), paper material selection, and page layout design. It details the drafting methods for base maps at each scale, particularly the negative scribing technique for the 1:2.5 million base. Regarding colour application, the average number of printings per sheet was reduced to nine through colour chart development and the artificial negative method, combining contact screens with eight basic colours to produce thirty tints. The paper concludes that although atlas production interfered with regular topographic mapping, it served as a tremendous educational stimulus, fostering new ideas and innovative approaches to mapping problems.