Published fourteen years after the region had been officially declared a territory, this depiction of Arizona shows the state in a period of relative growth as eager homesteaders arrived to establish vast cattle ranches and miners flocked to the region for the copper reserves which the state would eventually become famous for. Arizona’s remote landscape had kept the territory relatively untouched. Still, with Union Pacific completing the first transcontinental rail line in 1869, access had opened up access throughout much of the American Southwest. While Arizona would not achieve statehood until 1912, it was critical for the United States to gain control of the region to establish a national boundary from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean. The territory had been ceded to the United States from Mexico in the Treaty of Hidalgo in 1848, following their defeat in the Mexican-American War. Arizona had been a member of the Confederacy during the Civil War, but following a Confederate defeat at the Battle of Glorietta Pass in 1862, Confederate troops were forced to retreat to El Paso. The landscape shifts from arid deserts in the southern portion of the state to the Rocky Mountains' southernmost reaches in the North. Produced by noted German-born lithographer Julien Bien, the unique aesthetic and distinctive style immediately transports the viewer back in time. Bien was one of the most prolific lithographers of the nineteenth century, and his works spanned three decades. This is a genuine piece of American cartographical history. Our museum quality giclee print comes printed with archival ink on premium heavyweight matte paper. Shipped in a sturdy cardboard tube your print will arrive ready to be framed. This eye-catching vintage map reproduction print makes the perfect gift for anyone that loves history and imagery.