Goff's Historical Map of the Spanish-American War in the West Indies, 1898 distills a climactic year into a vivid, instructive tableau. Created by Eugenia Wheeler Goff and Henry Slade Goff—pioneers of accessible educational cartography—and published by The Fort Dearborn Publishing Co. in Chicago in 1899, it captures the swift sequence of operations that collapsed Spain’s Caribbean empire and redefined American power. Colorful and meticulously annotated, the map orients the viewer to the theaters that mattered most: Cuba and Puerto Rico, with the surrounding seas and straits shown as strategic corridors rather than mere backdrop. The result is both an historical summation and a tool of comprehension, turning headlines into legible geography.

The war’s decisive Caribbean campaigns are rendered with uncommon clarity. Cuba dominates the composition, its coast punctuated by labels for fortified ports, naval stations, and contested waters that propelled the U.S. invasion to victory. Puerto Rico appears not as a peripheral scene but as a concurrent, coordinated objective, linked by maritime routes across the Bahamas channel and the wider Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico. Annotations flag key battles and operational zones—most memorably at Santiago de Cuba—so that the viewer can trace the interplay of fleets, blockades, and landings that culminated in the Treaty of Paris and the sharp pivot in U.S. foreign policy.

A trio of insets—Santiago Campaign, San Juan Island, and Havana City and Harbor—function like magnifying lenses for the conflict’s most intricate episodes. The Santiago panel dwells on the naval chokepoints and approaches whose control determined the fate of Spain’s Caribbean squadron. The San Juan Island inset focuses attention on Puerto Rico’s principal theater, clarifying the island’s coastal access and defensive posture within the broader campaign. The Havana plan penetrates the metropolis and its harbor, where coastal batteries, channels, and urban adjacency reveal the strategic calculus of both fleets. Together, these windows supply operational granularity without sacrificing the narrative sweep of the main sheet.

Goff and Goff employ a rich, didactic palette that rewards close reading. Color fields differentiate jurisdictions and strategic zones, while crisp coastal delineations, island arcs, and labeled capes anchor the viewer amid the sweep of open water. Decorative cartouches frame the title with nineteenth-century flourish, yet the design remains purposeful: legible type, disciplined symbology, and clear hierarchies of information lead the eye from theater overview to tactical detail. The overall composition balances beauty and intent, marrying period aesthetics to a modern sense of clarity—an exemplar of the era’s faith that maps could teach not merely where events happened, but why they unfolded as they did.

Historically, the sheet marks a threshold: the dissolution of Spain’s Caribbean rule and the emergence of the United States as an imperial power. Notes referencing Puerto Rico, Cuba, and—at the map’s periphery—the Philippines and Guam, place the West Indies within a global realignment confirmed by the Treaty of Paris. Published in 1899, it carries the immediacy of fresh memory and the authority of synthesis. For collectors and historians alike, the map preserves the war’s geography in a single, coherent frame—an educational artifact elevated by artistry, and a work of cartographic narrative that links classrooms to command decisions across the Caribbean world.

Countries and regions on this map

• Cuba
• Puerto Rico
• Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic)
• Jamaica
• Bahamas
• Guam
• Philippines
• Caribbean Sea
• Gulf of Mexico

Notable Features & Landmarks

• Insets: Detailed insets of Santiago Campaign, San Juan Island, and Havana City and Harbor
• Geographical features: Large portions of the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico are depicted, including notable islands and coastal regions
• Military details: Locations of fortifications, naval bases, and battles such as Santiago de Cuba
• Annotations: Historical notes and titles for various campaigns and locations, enhancing educational value
• Cartouches: Decorative elements framing the map title that add to its historical aesthetic

Historical and design context

• Themes: Key locations and events of the Spanish-American War in the Caribbean, emphasizing military engagements and territorial changes
• Key Events: U.S. invasion of Cuba; naval Battle of Santiago de Cuba; Treaty of Paris
• Design/Style: Detailed, colorful cartography highlighting significant battles, locations, and strategic points
• Historical Significance: Shows the transition from Spanish to American control in the Caribbean and the U.S. emergence as an imperial power
• Publisher: The Fort Dearborn Publishing Co., Chicago, 1899
• Creators: Eugenia Wheeler Goff and Henry Slade Goff, known for educational maps for schools and families
• Map Name: Goff's Historical Map of the Spanish-American War in the West Indies, 1898

Please double check the images to make sure that a specific town or place is shown on this map. You can also get in touch and ask us to check the map for you.

This map looks great at every size, but I always recommend going for a larger size if you have space. That way you can easily make out all of the details.

This map looks amazing at sizes all the way up to 70in (180cm). If you are looking for a larger map, please get in touch.

The model in the listing images is holding the 18x24in (45x60cm) version of this map.

The fifth listing image shows an example of my map personalisation service.

If you’re looking for something slightly different, check out my collection of the best old maps to see if something else catches your eye.

Please contact me to check if a certain location, landmark or feature is shown on this map.

This would make a wonderful birthday, Christmas, Father's Day, work leaving, anniversary or housewarming gift for someone from the areas covered by this map.

This map is available as a giclée print on acid free archival matte paper, or you can buy it framed. The frame is a nice, simple black frame that suits most aesthetics. Please get in touch if you'd like a different frame colour or material. My frames are glazed with super-clear museum-grade acrylic (perspex/acrylite), which is significantly less reflective than glass, safer, and will always arrive in perfect condition.

This map is also available as a float framed canvas, sometimes known as a shadow gap framed canvas or canvas floater. The map is printed on artist's cotton canvas and then stretched over a handmade box frame. We then "float" the canvas inside a wooden frame, which is available in a range of colours (black, dark brown, oak, antique gold and white). This is a wonderful way to present a map without glazing in front. See some examples of float framed canvas maps and explore the differences between my different finishes.

For something truly unique, this map is also available in "Unique 3D", our trademarked process that dramatically transforms the map so that it has a wonderful sense of depth. We combine the original map with detailed topography and elevation data, so that mountains and the terrain really "pop". For more info and examples of 3D maps, check my Unique 3D page.