1934 A Good-Natured map of the United States

A good-natured map of the United States setting forth the services of The Greyhound Lines and a few principal connecting bus lines

By:?Greyhound Lines

Date:?1934 (Published) Cleveland

Original Size:?19 x 29.25 inches (48.3 x 74.3 cm)

This is a fine print reproduction of a? bright and fun pictorial map?that is an object of true promotional Americana, designed to appeal to the burgeoning class of travelers who availed themselves of the services provided by Greyhound during the heyday of bus travel in the United States.

The first Greyhound bus began operation in Hibbing, Minnesota, in 1914 (see the illustration at the top center of the map). The Golden Gate Bridge had just opened (1937).

Caricatures and captions throughout the map run the gamut from humorous and charming to politically incorrect. A Texan in a ten-gallon hat and high-heeled boots boasts that ¡°Thar¡¯s room in Texas for all of Yurrup and half of Africa, yes suh.¡±

America¡¯s ethnic and regional perceptions of itself are made manifest by caricatures throughout the map, whose illustrations condone the social and racial stereotypes denoted in the map¡¯s pictorials¡ªNative American Indians snake dancing, African-Americans picking cotton¡ªall captioned with down home, folksy lingo.

Inventory #11048