154 CARNEGIE INSTITUTION OF WASHINGTON. 



This enterprise, the ''Calendar of Papers in the Archives of Paris 

 relating to the History of the Mississippi Valley," had its origin in the 

 conference of historical societies which accompanied the meeting of 

 the American Historical Association in 1907. A committee appointed 

 on that occasion, and composed chiefly of members representing the 

 historical societies and historical departments of States in the Middle 

 West, resolved upon the preparation of such a calendar, intended to 

 bring together, in a general list, notes of all the documents in those 

 archives relating to that subject. This excellent cooperative under- 

 taking was intended to prevent duplication of research in the French 

 archives on behalf of the States of the Mississippi Valley and to make 

 known to investigators every document in the archives of Paris relating 

 to the history of that great region. Funds were subscribed by the 

 various State historical societies and departments. The Carnegie 

 Institution of Washington contributed the services of Mr. Leland as 

 supervisor of the work. When the present war broke out the process 

 of note-taking had been nearly completed, and more than 20,000 

 documents pertaining to the subject in view had been systematically 

 described by his assistants. The funds originally raised have just 

 sufficed for this process. This Department proposes to take up the 

 work at the point now reached. A little additional work in Paris will 

 complete the taking of notes. Mrs. Surrey has begun the editing of 

 those already taken and the preparing of the manuscript for printing. 

 The value of such a calendar will be at once apparent to all students 

 of the history of the Mississippi Valley in the seventeenth and eight- 

 eenth centuries. 



Work on the "Atlas of the Historical Geography of the United 

 States" has been carried on chiefly in the Map Division of the Library 

 of Congress, the faciUties of which have been most obligingly placed 

 at Dr. PaulUn's disposal by Mr. P. Lee Phillips, chief of that division. 

 Dr. Paullin has completed his series of maps illustrating the history 

 of the international boundary controversies of the United States from 

 1776 to the present time, and the accompanying letter-press. He 

 next turned his attention to the maps illustrating the history of bound- 

 ary controversies between States. These maps, numerous and in 

 some cases perplexing, have now been completed by Dr. Paullin, 

 assisted by Mr. J. B. Bronson, of the Navy Department, as draftsman. 

 Dr. Paullin has also completed the text of the letter-press illustrating 

 this series. In the sunmaer, he took up the series of maps intended to 

 show at the beginning of each decade the extent and boundaries of 

 each State, and to illustrate at the same time the growth of urban 

 population by the indication of all towns of a certain size. In this 

 series a considerable portion, of both maps and letter-press, has now 

 been finished. 



