Augustus F. McKay, The Man of Commerce (1889)

Published in 1889, “The Man of Commerce” is an anthropomorphic map that combines a map of North America with a diagram of the human body. This map was created by Augustus F. McKay, who served as the editor of Superior Sentinel newspaper in West Superior, Wisconsin. The map showcases the growing importance of railroad and waterway transportation during the late nineteenth century. It has 29 railroad routes--the "arterial and venous circulatory apparatus" of the man, carrying his life blood in metaphorical terms. The map promotes West Superior, which is at "the head of Lake Superior," as the "heart of this wonderful man, the center of the great railroad and commercial system." The other metaphors on McKay's map, and detailed in his "Explanatory Notes" are numerous: For example, New York is the "umbilicus through which the man of commerce was developed," with the "railroads to Chicago forming the umbilical cord, through which early circulation was carried on." The Canadian Pacific, Great Northern, Northern Pacific, and Union Pacific railroads represent "four principal arteries of the head," and the precious metals they transport are like the "brain power" that moves the man. The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River make up different organs of the digestive system, helping transport goods through the Man of Commerce in McKay's fascinating analogy.