Fullarton, Archibald

Archibald Fullarton was the founder of a prominent 19th-century Scottish publishing house best known for its richly detailed gazetteers and atlases of the British Isles and the wider world. His firm was among the last to publish maps adorned with decorative vignettes, combining visual appeal with geographical precision. Fullarton’s notable works include the New & Comprehensive Gazetteer of England & Wales (later titled the Parliamentary Gazetteer, 1834–1849), featuring finely engraved county maps that reflected the sweeping electoral changes brought about by the Great Reform Act. He also published the Imperial Gazetteer of Scotland (1854–1857) and its companion, the Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales, followed by the expansive Gazetteer of the World (1856). His most celebrated cartographic achievement was the Royal Illustrated Atlas (published in 27 parts between 1854 and 1862, completed in 1864), a grand work of geography and artistry. This was later followed by the Hand Atlas of the World (1870–1872). Fullarton's publications stand as a testament to the Victorian appetite for both knowledge and beauty in print.