First U.S. Map Purchased

With the swirl of politically turbulent events dominating the news, the Washington Post slipped in a story in today's edition about the recent purchase of the first known map of the new United States. Carlyle Fund co-founder and managing director David Rubenstein made the purchase. He has lent the map to the Library of Congress.

Obtaining the 43" x 48", hand colored item, known as the Abel Buell map, is a significant achievement for the Library of Congress. Sadly, the map was sold by the New Jersey Historical Society. They lacked funds and the institution, in essence, sold their equivalent of the family silver. The map is shown at right.