The Measure of Manhattan:
A Lecture by Marguerite Holloway

John Randel Jr. (1787-1865) was an eccentric and flamboyant surveyor. A nineteenth century genius renowned for his inventiveness as well as his bombast and irascibility, John Randel mapped Manhattan’s famous city grid but died in financial ruin. Telling Randel’s engrossing and dramatic life story for the first time, Marguerite Holloway’s biography The Measure of Manhattan introduces an unheralded pioneer of American engineering and mapmaking. The book also explores the ways in which surveying and cartography change the ground beneath our feet. Bringing Randel’s story into the present, Holloway travels with contemporary surveyors and scientists trying to envision Manhattan as a wild island once again. The Measure of Manhattan: The Tumultuous Career and Surprising Legacy of John Randel, Jr., Cartographer, Surveyor, Inventor will be available for sale and signing.