41.     John Murray I                                                                            1863 

The late 1830s had seen the introduction of the handbook or guide book and the prominence of the two publishing houses who would dominate the British market for guidebooks throughout the Victorian era: Murray (Handbook) and A & C Black (Guide). Murray´s first map of Exeter appeared as early as 1863 but it would not be until 1881 that A & C Black included a plan in their guide (49).

John Murray (1778-1843) started the famous series of red-bound guides in 1836 but it was his son, also John, who produced the first county guide; A Handbook for Travellers in Devon & Cornwall was first published in 1850. The early editions did not include any town maps, but the 5th edition of 1863 included a map of Exeter. In the 9^th edition of 1879 the map was replaced by one by Edward Weller (see 48). 

Title: EXETER

Size: 125 x 100 mm but no scale.

No signature and no imprint. 

A fairly simple map of the city extending from St. Thomas to the Cavalry Barracks, showing the new railway and the station off Queen Street. Below the map is a list of 7 buildings. Two notes: To Veitch’s Nursery (bottom right) and To face page 17 (below central). 

The map appeared again in A Handbook for Travellers in Devon and Cornwall sixth and A Handbook for Travellers in Devonshire eighth editions. The 6^th edition of the handbook was published in 1865: page reference 6, Route 1 – Exeter and Sect. 1 all added above plan; To face page 17 deleted (illustrated above). For the eighth edition of 1872 (there was no seventh edition) all added notes were removed along with the reference to Veitch’s Nursery and Albert Museum was added to the list of buildings (illustrated below).

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 48.     John Murray II                                                                           1879 

So popular were John Murray’s red-bound books that the company separated Devon & Cornwall in the 9th edition of 1879 and introduced a new, and considerably improved, map for Exeter (replaces 41) for the Devonshire handbook. The plan was used in the Tenth (above) and Eleventh Editions of Murray’s A Handbook for Travellers in Devonshire until 1901. 

Title: EXETER for Murray’s Handbook for Devon

Size: 160 x 190 mm but no scale.

Signature: Edwd Weller (engraver) and publisher’s imprint: London: John Murray Albemarle St. 

The plan covers the area from St. Thomas to Polsloe Park and from the Canal Basin to Exwick. It is the first map to have a grid system to aid finding locations. Although rather a small map it is accurate and detailed and would have been a useful aid to the traveller.

Revised copies of the plan were used in the later 10^th edition of 1887 (with only minor amendments – List of 14 buildings and Bridewell (at B3) becomes Governors and Chaplains houses). The 11th edition (below) of 1895 has roads added and named, especially in quadrants A5-6 and E5; a tunnel under the Tiverton Road for S. W. Railway (A7); and the area northwest of the Workhouse and west of Diocesan Trinity College is extensively developed (C-D6).

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