Birch Hill Farm, Vermont
A map commissioned as a gift, and a record that outlasted the land
Birch Hill Farm sits in Vermont's equestrian country: a working family place with a maple-sugaring operation, carriage-driving routes through the woods, and hiking trails across the surrounding hills. The map was a gift, commissioned by the Jacobs family, and researched with a particular eye to the maple sugaring, the local newspaper records and the historic maps of the region.
The Farm, at a Moment in Time
The map records the farm as it was while the family lived on it: the maple house, the trails and carriage routes, the buildings and woodland, the hills the children grew up walking. Every named feature was researched, and many of the names had never appeared on any earlier map of the property.
What a Family Map Outlasts
Some years after it was delivered, the family sold Birch Hill and moved on. The map went with them. It hangs in the new house now, where they see it every day, a portable record of a place they no longer live but still belong to. In time they commissioned Anthony a second time, to map the new home and the country around it, with the same eye to its local history.
“I recently had the pleasure to commission Anthony Pelly at Rural Maps for a project concerning the drawing of a map for a property in New England, USA.
Planning: From the very beginning Anthony was extremely helpful and communicative, calling me directly after my initial request, to discuss the project and background of the property. He put in a lot of effort to describe his work and to explain the entire process of producing a map. I cannot stress enough how nice it was to work with him from the very beginning.
Execution: During the initial phase of the execution of the map Anthony went above and beyond to get to know the property as much as he could. He read local newspaper articles, researched satellite images, historic maps and learned everything he could about the local industry of maple sugaring on our property. Anthony was extremely engaged and he put a very personal touch on this project. He sent printed drafts, accompanied by PDFs for circulation among involved parties. Taking on board our comments and adapting everything to our suggestions. Anthony worked incredibly hard to make this project as perfect as he could.
Finish: As the project drew to an end he made sure that the print would come out perfectly, checking everything meticulously before sending the final print to me. The final product is an incredible piece of art, giving an extremely detailed overview of the entire property. I could not think of any better addition to the wall of our family home, and would do business again with Anthony without thinking about it twice. Overall, I cannot praise Anthony and the team at Rural Maps enough and I highly recommend anyone thinking about having a bespoke map produced to work with him. They are masters of the art and true experts in this kind of work, going above and beyond to ensure everything is perfect.
If you need any more information please do not hesitate to get in contact with me personally.”
“I recently had the pleasure to commission Anthony Pelly at Rural Maps for a project concerning the drawing of a map for a property in New England, USA.
Planning: From the very beginning Anthony was extremely helpful and communicative, calling me directly after my initial request, to discuss the project and background of the property. He put in a lot of effort to describe his work and to explain the entire process of producing a map. I cannot stress enough how nice it was to work with him from the very beginning.
Execution: During the initial phase of the execution of the map Anthony went above and beyond to get to know the property as much as he could. He read local newspaper articles, researched satellite images, historic maps and learned everything he could about the local industry of maple sugaring on our property. Anthony was extremely engaged and he put a very personal touch on this project. He sent printed drafts, accompanied by PDFs for circulation among involved parties. Taking on board our comments and adapting everything to our suggestions. Anthony worked incredibly hard to make this project as perfect as he could.
Finish: As the project drew to an end he made sure that the print would come out perfectly, checking everything meticulously before sending the final print to me. The final product is an incredible piece of art, giving an extremely detailed overview of the entire property. I could not think of any better addition to the wall of our family home, and would do business again with Anthony without thinking about it twice.
Overall, I cannot praise Anthony and the team at Rural Maps enough and I highly recommend anyone thinking about having a bespoke map produced to work with him. They are masters of the art and true experts in this kind of work, going above and beyond to ensure everything is perfect.”
Theresa