WELCOME 1910's Oil Company Road Maps of Pennsylvania WELCOME

The oil company road maps of the early years are dominated by Gulf. The 1914 map was in the form of a mailer and printed by W. B. Akins of Pittsburgh. The 1915 and 1916 maps were dated. However, from 1917 to 1926 Gulf maps carried no date or one that was not the date of issue and they are thus difficult to date. The ones up to 1921 carry the Automobile Blue Book designation (or A. B. B.). Some guidance on dating early Gulf maps is given in the article The Early Gulf Road Maps of Pennsylvania ; which also includes additional Gulf maps not shown here.

Atlantic issued a map in 1916, Transcontinental Oil (Marathon) issued one in 1919. Waverly Oil Works Company issued a map in 1916 showing western New York and Pennsylvania, and Ohio.



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  1914 Gulf issued its first Pennsylvania road map in 1914 printed by W. B. Akins of Pittsburgh. It was a three panel map, about 10 x 12 inches, printed on coarse paper showing an auto and tourists with a mailer face and paid postage permit.
1915 GULF - AUTOMOBILE BLUE BOOK. This map has a distinctive yellow cover used only on 1915 and 1916 maps. It is copyright 1915 by A. B. B. CO., that is, the Automobile Blue Book Company. The route numbers on the map correspond to route numbers in Volume 3 of the 1915 Automobile Blue Book as shown on the Map Image .
1916 ATLANTIC - AUTOMOBILE BLUE BOOK. This map used Blue Book route numbers which referred to detailed route instructions in a guide (of ~1000 pages!) published by Automobile Blue Book Publishing Co. Detailed driving instructions were necessary because there were no route signs on the roads back then. This map was made in the form of a mailer 3 x 9 inches, and the map itself is about 16 x 9 inches, larger than the Gulf maps. Atlantic was one of the few companies other than Gulf to issue a road map of Pennsylvania prior to the 1920's. The cartography resembled the Gulf map, see the Map Image which shows just the western half of Pennsylvania. The back shows routes in Delaware.
1916 WAVERLY OIL WORKS. 'Over the Hills to Bedford' is the title on this undated map from an early Pittsburgh oil refiner. Waverly published a map in 1916 of New York and western Pennsylvania, so that date is used here. The 1 cent postage stamp on the cover dates 1908-1922, so the map was issued sometime in that period. The unusual map shows the elevation profile between Pittsburgh and Bedford. A watering stop, important for early radiators, is shown at the top of the Allegheny summit. The back has text describing the wonders of Waverly gas and oil.
1917 GULF - AUTOMOBILE BLUE BOOK. This map has an Automobile Blue Book copyright mark, but no date and no route numbers. The orange overlay on the route map inside has been misprinted an inch to the left. It is believed to be the 1917 map.
1918 THE MOTORISTS' CONVENIENT RECORD OF LUBRICATION, TIRES AND GASOLINE, which is undated but can be dated 1918 by the text. This is not a map but a log book for motorists to keep track of their (hopefully) Gulf car service. It has the same cover Gulf was using on road maps at this time.
1919 GULF - AUTOMOBILE BLUE BOOK. This map has an Automobile Blue Book copyright mark and the date 1916, Gulf began reusing the 1916 plate for some reason. The William Penn Highway (Route 22), the Lincoln Highway (Route 30), and the National Road (Route 40) are identified by name. This is believed to be the 1919 map.
Oil Company Road Maps 1910's 1920's 1930's 1940's
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