A. The Ideal Family

With the rising prosperity of the mid-twentieth century, the automobile became a staple for many American families. Responding to this shift, oil companies began marketing the American landscape as something an adventurous family should experience. Road map cover art enticed them to explore the nation’s natural, historical, and technological attractions, while the map itself became an integral part of the imaginative and practical process of planning and executing a tour. The road map also did much to define the ideal traveling family. Extending a motif of the earlier decades, oil companies gave the “pioneering individual” some wholesome company and the “pioneering family” was born. The majority of families featured on road map covers were white, middle class, and consisted of a mother, father, son, and daughter: the “traditional” family as envisioned by the advertising industry. The family on the road was routinely shown as relaxed and free of rivalry or discord. There was nothing to spoil their thrill of the open road or the appreciation of the landscape.

Highway Map of United States

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Conoco
Highway Map of United States
Chicago: HM Gousha Company, 1954
Doug Yorke Collection


Washington, DC and vicinity Road Map and Visitor’s Guide

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Esso Standard Oil Company
Washington, DC and vicinity Road Map and Visitor’s Guide
New York: General Drafting Co., 1951
Doug Yorke Collection


California Road Map

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Union Oil Company
California Road Map
Denver: Jeppesen and Co., 1951
Bloom Collection


Eastern United States and Adjacent Canada Interstate Map

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Esso Standard Oil Company
Eastern United States and Adjacent Canada Interstate Map
Convent Station, NJ: General Drafting Co., 1958
Bloom Collection


Southeast United States Interstate Map

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Standard Oil
Southeast United States Interstate Map
Convent Station, NJ: General Drafting Co., Inc., 1953
Bloom Collection