The Map & Chart Makers

J.F.W. Des Barres

Joseph Frederick Wallet Des Barres was unquestionably one of the most important and talented hydrographers of the day. He personally surveyed many thousands of miles of the coastlines of Newfoundland, New Brunswick and New England.

He spent two years surveying and charting the very remote Isle of Sable, an area which, although of very little economic value (unlike the more southerly lands of colonial America), lay close to vital shipping lanes. The area was known at the time as 'one of America's most populated graveyards'.

The attention and detail that Des Barres lavished into this work alone was ultimately justified in the saving of lives, a point not lost on Hyde-Parker (1739-1807).

As Captain of the Phoenix in 1778, he and his ship had to endure a three-week long storm which made astronomical observations impossible. Believing themselves to be off the coast of Cape Cod, Hyde-Parker decided to take soundings which were then compared with the Des Barres charts they had on-board, and found themselves to be fast approaching the dreaded Isle of Sable instead!

Des Barres was born in Switzerland, and joined the British Army as a military engineer. In 1756 he was posted to North America as a lieutenant in the Royal American Regiment. He served under General Wolfe in Canada in the Seven Years War against the French as part of a team of talented surveyors which included James Cook and Samuel Holland. As the British presence on the North American continent grew in response to the unrest of the insurgent colonial states, so too did the relevance of the work these men were doing. Des Barres was not, according to all accounts, the easiest of individuals to work with, and throughout his life he frequently fought with his Lords and Masters back in Britain, which almost certainly caused him to be over-looked for the position of Surveyor General of the Northern territories in America (a position which went to the more agreeable Holland). He was however charged by the Government of the day with compiling what was to prove to be one of the most important naval documents ever produced – The Atlantic Neptune.

The Atlantic Neptune Folio was compiled by Des Barres, partly from his own work, but it also relied heavily on that of others including most of the hydrographers and surveyors listed included here. There were four editions of the folio - 1777, 1780, 1781 & 1784 - with each of the 'books' which went toward the folio covering different geographic areas;

Book 1 Nova Scotia with a small part of Newfoundland.
Book 2 The coast and harbours of New England.
Book 3 Gulf of St. Lawrence and the Isles of Cape Breton and St. John's.
Book 4 The coast of North America south of New York.
Book 5 Various views of the North American coast (in later editions of the folio this last book was incorporated into the other 4 'books' according to geographic area).

In its day, the Atlantic Neptune was described as “one of the most remarkable products of human industry that has ever been given to the world through the arts of printing and engraving” and as “The most splendid collection of charts, plans and views ever published”.

Des Barres was an extremely talented artist and engraver and, although his hydrographic work was marked by his attention to detail, he was also capable of producing some near masterpieces of detail in his drawing. Although he is credited with being a poor administrator, something which all too often caused him financial strife throughout his life, even as the eventual Governor of Halifax, Des Barres is known, at times of disagreement with the Admiralty, to have paid out of his own pocket the retention of his own team of supporting surveyors.

He lived to an old age and was reputed to have danced on the table on his 100th birthday. He died a couple of years later, still in dispute with his own Government over payment for his work on the Atlantic Neptune.

Associated Charts and Maps: A101, A102, A103a, A103b, A106, A109v, A111, A112, A113, A114, A115, A116v, A120, A205, A206, A207, A208, A209av, A209bv, A302, A305, A306, A307, A308.