Oh, I hope not. Vested interest obviously. But my life veered to maps long, long before that fateful day in the early ‘90’s when my husband told me that he wanted to create maps for a living.
Ever been following GPS to a destination and realize you haven’t the foggiest idea where you are, or worse as you drive along there is an incredible natural formation to the right and you can’t ask Siri what it is because you don’t have a signal. Frustrating? You bet! The search for a map is aimless, unless you drive an old car.
I was the nerd in the back seat with a map in my lap following along as my parents drove to Florida the super long way because of my Father’s PTSD, not from his amazing career in the Army, but from his time working at the Pentagon. Maneuvering the streets in DC really took its toll. He would drive hundreds of miles out of his way just to avoid DC traffic.
It was my Dad that spurred my interest in maps. He was a career Army officer and that career started in 1941 when he graduated from college and was commissioned. Weeks later he found himself in Oklahoma and started his training as an artilleryman. During WWII he sat in tents, using a slide rule and maps, he figured out where to direct the artillery shells. He was really good at it. I hope I saved his slide rule. He taught, correction, he tried to teach me how to use it. It was Greek to me. When Texas Instruments developed calculators with scientific functions, he purchased one hesitantly and not at all convinced. But he was obviously charmed as he gave me numerous TI calculators to aid in my early career path.
My father was stationed as the Professor of Military Science at a university in the early 1960’s. As part of his job, he taught map reading. I found the textbook years later when my neighborhood chum and I played school. In my tiny bedroom, I had a blackboard and we created a desk. We took turns being the teacher. When she was the teacher, she taught English. She went on to be a very successful English teacher. And me, as her first student, became a wordsmith, and a lover of reading and writing. When I was the teacher, I used my father’s textbook and taught map reading. I dare say I was not as good as a teacher as she was, but it sparked an interest that has lasted a lifetime.
My eyes really sparkled in 1993 when my husband said he wanted to create maps. Maps are artistic, even silly computer-generated road maps have a personality. They are informative. Important artists used them in their work. Yes, Johannes Vermeer is up there on my list of favorite artists. And they let you know where you are in the world. Or in McElfresh Map’s case, where Americans made history. And how they maneuvered in the terrain.
We have been in business for over three decades. And if it is buggy whips we are producing, so be it. We have some great things in our archives and will be sharing them as we celebrate our thirty-third year in business. So stay tuned, or in map terms, keep us on your dashboard.
