On the earliest maps the west coast of North America did not show any large islands. California first appeared on maps as an island in the early 1600’s. In 1700 Father Kino, a Franciscan monk, disproved the island myth by traveling to California on foot from Sonora. Father Kino was credited with building the missions in Sonora and Arizona. Despite his efforts and a decree from the King of Spain, California continued to be depicted as an island for another 100 years.

For more information on this fascinating topic see The Mapping of California as an Island by Glen McLaughlin.

In 1719 many mapmakers still believed that California was an island. “The Island of California” by Dora Beale Polk among other books tells this story well. In addition to California as an island this map shows another interesting detail along the east coast of North America. The French, who made this map were involved in a century long struggle with the British and the Spanish for control of these newly discovered lands. On this map Chiquet claims for France all of the northeast except for the five British colonies which are greatly constrained. The large island off New York, “N. Jork” on the map (the red dot) is probably Long Island. The mouth of the Mississippi River (blue dot) is shown several hundred miles west of its true location. The map is ambiguous about land claims west of the Mississippi River perhaps because of the color being added incorrectly later. However, if red indicates French claims, then France is claiming the mythical island of California.