FOREIGN OFFICIAL AND PRIVATE MAP PUBLISHERS-URUGUAY

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP79-00976A000200010002-5
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 25
• Document Creation Date: November 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: November 15, 1999
• Sequence Number: 2
• Publication Date: January 1, 1951
• Content Type: REPORT

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FOREIGN OFFICIAL AND PRIVATE
MAP PUBLISHERS -a URUGUAY
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Published January 1951
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
ci A
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WARNING
This document contains information affecting the na-
tional defense of the United States within the meaning
of the Espionage Act, 50 U.S.C., 31 and 32, as amended.
Its transmission or the revelation of its contents in any
manner to an unauthorized person is prohibited by law.
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S
FOREIGN OFFICIAL AND PRIVATE
MAP PUBLISEERS
URUGUAY
14114.
January 1951
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
RES
iR
ICTAD
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MAP PUBLISHERS OF URUGUAY
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
I. Introduction 1
A. Present status of mapping 1
B. Development of cartography 4
II. Individual map publishers 6
A. Official map-publishing agencies 6
1.
Comisidn de Li:mites y Caracterizacidn de
Fronteras Uruguay-Brasil
6
2.
Comision Tecnica y Financiera de las
Obras Hidroelectricas del Ri:o Negro
6
3.
Direccidn de HidrografA
7
4.
Direccidn de Saneamiento
7
5.
Direccidn de Topografi:a
8
6.
Direccidn de Vialidad
9
7.
Instituto Geoldgico del Uruguay
10
8.
Oficina Nacional de Turismo
11
9.
Seccidn de Estadiistica Agronocnica
12
10.
Servicio Cooperativo Interamericano de
Salud
13
11.
Servicio Geogr4:fico Militar
13
12.
Servicio HidrogrE(fico de la Marina
15
13.
Servicio Meteoroldgico del Uruguay
16
B.
Private map publishers
17
14.
Guias Araujo
17
15.
Prof. Horacio Ureta Martinez
17
III. Gl.oasarm ..... - . ? .
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I. INTRODUCTION
A. Present Statue of Mapping
Uruguay is less advanced cartographically than the neighboring
countries of Argentina and Brazil. Most of its maps are inadequate and
out of date, and production is at a law level. Contoured topographic
maps at 1:20,000 (9 sheets), 1:50,000 (34 sheets), and 1:200,000 (1 sheet)
cover only about 10 percent of the country. The 34 sheets of the basic
1:500000 series were produced between 1926 and 1950, and the present
average output is 1 sheet a year. No further work at 1:20,000 is planned
until the 1:500000 set is completed and brought up to date, and work on
the 1:200,000 sheets, to be compiled from the 1:50,000 set, is at a
standstill for lack of data.
Fifteen agencies -- thirteen official and two private -- produce
practically all the maps made in Uruguay. Topographic map series for
public use are made only by the Servicio Geogretfico Militar (SGM), of
the Ministerio de Defensa Nacional. The ComisiOn de anites y Caracteri-
zadion de Fronteras Uruguay-Brasil of the Ministerio de Relaciones
Exteriores, and the DirecciOn de Hidrografla (DH) and Direcci8n de
Vialidad (DV), both in the Ministerio de Obras 141blicas, produce extremely
large scale maps of limited areas for official use only. Planimetric maps
of departamentos are prepared by the Direccicin de TopografA (DT) of the
Ministerio de Oiras PlIblicas, by the DirecciOn General de Cadastro (DGC)
of the Ministerio de Hacienda, and by Prof. Horacio Ureta Martinez, the
leading private cartographer of Uruguay.
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Hydrographic charts showing some relief are made by the Servicio
Hidrografico de la Marina (SH-M), of the Ministerio de Defensa Nacional,
and river surveys for official use only have been made by the Direccicln
de Eidrografia and by various national commissions for the development of
hydroelectric power. Road maps are published by the Direccidn de Vialidad,
the Oficina Nacional de Turismo (ONT), Prof. Ureta Martinez, the Centro
Automovilistico del Uruguay (CAU), and various oil companies. Geological
maps are made only by the Instituto GeolOgico del Uruguay (IGU) in the
Ministerio de Inelstria y Trabajo. Crop and other agricultural maps are
prepared occasionally by the,Secci?n de Estadistica Agronlica of the
Ministerio de GanaderiA y Agricultura.
Topographic maps at scales ranging from 1:20,000 to 1:50,000 cover
less than 10 percent of the area of Uruguay. Since its founding in 1913,
the Servicio Geogreffico Militar has produced 9 sheets at 1:20,000 of the
departamento of Montevideo and 34 sheets at 1:50,000 of southern Uruguay.
The maps are of excellent quality, in both presentation and accuracy, but
only one sheet has been revised and no further revisions can be made with-
out stopping work an all new sheets. High-precision leveling and tri-
angulation data by the SGM are available to all government mapping agencies.
Although the triangulation and leveling data in the files of the
SGM are sufficient for a planimetric map at 1:500,000, and possibly at
1:250,000, the most recent official map of the country is one at 1:250,000
in 16 sheets issued by the Federaciln Uruguaya de Educaci& Vial (FUEV) in
1936; this map was reissued without revision in 2 sheets at 1:500,000 in
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1939. Because the presentation of roads, railroads, and hydrography is
detailed and reliable for the date, the map has been a prime source for
cartographers since its publication.
Fair to good planimetric maps at scales ranging from 1:100,000 to
1:200,000 have been produced for 11 of the departamentos by the Direcccfn
de Topografiia. Only one of these has been lithographed. Prof. Horacio
Ureta Mart/nez compiled maps of 11 departamentos in 1938 at scales of
1:150,000 and 1:200,000. The Direccidn General de Cadastro has compiled
1:100,000 maps of all 19 departamentos, but the coverage is of doubtful
quality.
Reliable, though generalized, road maps at 1:1,000,000 are issued
irregularly by the Direccidn de Inalidad (DV) and usually every year by
the Oficina Nacional de Turismo (ONT). Maps by the DV include construc-
tion status and projected roads, whereas the ONT maps show only completed
roads. The Esso Standard Oil Company issued a 1:1,000,000 road map in
1949, which is regarded as the best road and general map of the country.
Texaco also published a tourist map, at 1:1,200,0000 in 1947, compiled
by Prof. Ureta Martenez. Both the Shell-Mex Oil Company and the Centro
AutomovilAtico del Uruguay have published booklets of strip maps for
main roads.
Two special geological maps covering all of Uruguay have been made
by the Instituto Geolcfgico del Uruguay. The first, published in 1942,
was a preliminary reconnaissance survey map and contained many errors.
The second map, published in 1946, incorporates revised data but is highly
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generalized. Geological maps of eight departamentos have been issued at
1:250,000 but show little additional detail.
A small number of crop production and distribution maps based on
official statistical returns by police districts are made by the Direccion
de Agronomia. Police districts are the smallest administrative units
of Uruguay.
General maps of departamentos, wall maps, road maps, and a school
atlas containing 18 maps of Uruguay have been produced by Prof. Uteta
Martinez. All the Ureta Martinez maps are compiled from official maps
and statistical data and are thoroughly checked against aerial photographs
to insure accuracy.
B. Development of Cartography
No maps or atlases have been of outstanding significance in the
development of Uruguayan cartography. Although many general maps have
been made, little is known of the sources of information used or of
their accuracy. Probably cadastral and road and railroad surveys were the
major sources of data for most of the maps. Road and railroad con-
struction in the low, rolling grasslands of Uruguay, however, required
only simple traverses. The traverses and cadastral surveys form the
greater part of the reference map collections of the various bureaus of
the Ministerio de Obras Publicas, which have the largest government map
libraries. None of the maps, however, contain much data an topography.
There are practically no early official maps or Uruguay. In 1924,
the Servicio Geogre!phico Militar reported in its BoletA (Vol. 1, 1924)
that maps of the Republic at that date were principally the result of
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private initiative and that there were no good supporting geodetic surveys.
To provide a base for trigonometric and topographic surveys, work an
the first official map of the country was begun in 1903. In 1905, the
work was taken over by the Third Division of the General Staff of the Army,
which compiled a map of each of the police divisions into which the country
was divided. Copies of the maps were sent to the governors of all departa-
mentos with requests for corrections and for further information on the
locations of roads, bridges, and fords and the distances between the
various features. The information received was compiled to produce a
general map at 1:200,000, which was published in 1908.
In 1909, the ComisiOn Geogretfica (Geographic Commission) was organ-
ized as a branch ot the Estado Mayor del Ejercito (General Staff of the
Army) to establish a trigonometric net for the Republic and to produce a
topographic map that could be used by all government offices and by private
individuals. The ComisiOn Geogreifica was replaced in 1913 by the Servicio
Geogrdhco Militar (SGM), which also took over the geodetic section of the
Ministerio de Obras Ptiblicas (Ministry of Public Works) with all its
archives and reference materials. The SGM began triangulation of the
southern part of the country late in 1913. Rigid standards were set up
for the triangulation, which was to serve as the basis for all future
topographic surveys.
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II. INDIVIDUAL MAP PUBLISHES'
A. Official Map-Publishing Agencies
1. ComisiOn de Limites y Caracterizacicn de Fronterai Uruguay-
Brasil, Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores (Commission on the Limits
and Description of the Uruguay-Brazil Boundary, Ministry of Foreign
Relations)
Calle Juan Carlos GOmez 1362, Montevideo
Mayor Julio C. Roletti, Alternate Delegate
This Commission is the official organization for studying the only
land boundary of Uruguay. The ComisiOn is composed of three persons and
a part-time draftsman. Field parties for the infrequent boundary surveys
are borrowed from the Servicio GeogrAfico Militar. No maps have been
published to date, but work is in progress an a 1:10,000 topographic map
of the immediate boundary area. Plans have been made for a 1:10000,000
map showing the status of the boundaries with Argentina and Brazil.
2. ComisiOn Tecnica y Financiera de las Obras Hidroelectricas del
Rio Negro (Technical and Financial Commission of the RiO Negro Hydro-
electric Works)
Calle Washington 317, Montevideo
Ing. Eduardo Terra Arocena, President of the Board of Directors
Ing. Luis Giorgi, Director General
Agrim. Jose A. Richero, Chief, Expropriations and Topography Section
This Commission, commonly known in Uruguay as 'Rione," was set up
to provide the city and vicinity of Montevideo with light and power
from the Rio Negro. The construction work having been completed, no maps
1/ All of the agencies discussed were visited by a US Foreign Service
Geographic Attache during 1946-47 and 1949-50. Agencies not visited
have not been described.
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are now in progress or projected. Most of those produced were bound in
reports.. Four surveyors and two draftsmen employed during the period of
study and construction have been dismissed.
3. Direccion de Hidrografia,(DH), Ministerio de Obras Piablicas
(Bureau of Hydrography, Ministry of Public Works)
Calle 25 de Mayo 320, Montevideo
Ing. Humberto Rampoldi, Acting Director
Ing. Guillermo Rondini, Assistant Director
This bureaulwas created to study, develop, and maintain existing
inland waterways and to investigate potential waterways and possibilities
for developing hydroelectric power and irrigation. All maps made in con-
nection with such studies are for the use of the Ministerio de Obras
PUblicas. The staff is small and has produced few maps.
These are mainly detailed large-scale plans of reservoirs, canals,
and power-plant sites. Surveys have been made of the Rio Negro including
the area of the new reservoirs, and of areas in the Department of Rocha.
No change in type or quantity of production is planned.
All material for the maps is taken fram surveys by DH engineers and,
presumably, is based an SGM control. The maps are drafted and lettered
by hand. No maps produced by the DH are available in Washington except
a few that appear in reports. It is therefore impossible to evaluate
their cartographic presentation, content, and utility for use in the
United States.
If. Direccion de Saneamiento (DS), Ministerio de Obras Publicas
(Bureau of Sanitation, Ministry of Public Works)
Calle Jose Martr 3379, Montevideo
Ing. Adam Gianoni, Director
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This little-known bureau produces maps exclusively for the use of the
Ministry of Public Works. Although small, it has produced 146 plans of
Uruguayan cities and towns at scales ranging from 1:1,000 to 1:10,000.
These plans were compiled to show street patterns in relation to existing
drinking water and sewage systems. None of the plane are very detailed.
Drafting is entirely by hand, usually for ozalid reproduction.
5. DirecciOn de TopografA (DT), Ministerio de Obras PtIblicas
(Bureau of Topography, Ministry of Public Works)
Calle Piedras 421, Montevideo
Agrimensor Jose Pedro Astigarraga, Director
Guillermo Soler, Chief, Drafting Office
This bureau is a small map-making office in the Ministerio de Obras
Publicas that makes large-scale cadastral maps and general maps of
departamentos principally for the use of the Ministry and other government
agencies; a few maps annually are issued for public use. The agency has
no counterpart in any other country of South America.
Only planimetric maps of the departamentos of Uruguay are made by
the DT. Except for those accompanying special reports, the maps range
in scale from 1:100,000 to 1:200,000. All are based principally on surveys
along roads and railroads. It is planned to continue work on the maps
now in construction and to produce complete, detailed maps at large scale
for all the departamentos of Uruguay. A map at 1:100,000 of Cerro Largo
is expected to be printed in 1950; work is in progress on maps of
Lavalleja at 1:50,000 and of Paysandu, Rio Negro, Rivera, TacuarembdP, and
Treinta y Tres at 1:100,000.
To date, the DT has added little to the mapping of Uruguay. The
map of the departamento of Canelones at 1:110,000, 1946, is the only
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lithographed map produced by the DT, none of the other maps being con-
sidered complete enough for publication except as ozalid prints. All
cartographic work is done by hand. Legends are adequate, but no co-
ordinates or grids of any kind are used. Detail is limited to boundaries
of police divisione (similar to countries), hydrography, roads, railroads,
and towns.
6. Direccion de Vialidad (DV), Ministerio de Obras Publicas (Bureau
of Public Roads, Ministry of Public Works)
Calle Piedras 387, Montevideo
Ing. Roberto Pellarolo, Director
Ing. Victor E. Selasco, Assistant Director
Ing. Humberto Rampoldi, Chief, Department I, Construction and
Conservation (on leave)
Ing. Civil Ezequiel SAnchez Gonzalez, Chief, Department II, Studies
and Projects
Ing. Jose Mauthane Falco, Chief, Department III, Administration
This bureau is an official map-making agency that prepares most of
its maps for the Ministry of Public Works. Only map ii of Uruguay are made
-- principally small-scale maps for use in reports, and sketches, profiles,
and large-scale detailed plans for projected roads. Maps and plans are
also made to accompany descriptions of projected or completed work and
are published in Rutas (Routes), the official monthly highway journal
for public distribution.
Data used in compilation are from DV tachymetric surveys based in part
on SGM controls. Fifty-two engineers are employed. The cartographic staff,
however, is small, and all drafting and lettering are done by hand.
The latest DV map available in Washington is the 1:700,000 map, issued
in 1947 and now being revised, which shows highways completed, under con-
struction, and under consideration, as well as municipal and dirt roads.
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Road information is reliable and the status of roads is adequately pre-
sented in generalized form, but the cartography is not good.
7. Instituto Geollgico del Uruguay (IGU), Ministerio de Industria y
Trabajo (Geologic Institute of Uruguay, Ministry of Industry and Labor)
Av. Julio Herrera y Obes 1239, Montevideo
Ing. Eduardo Terra Arocena, Director General and Inspector General of
mines.
Ing. Lorenzo Buquet, Assistant Director and Chief, of the Hydrology and
Well Drilling Section
Ing. Juan Caorci, Chief, Economic Geology Section
Ing. Nicolas Serra, Geologist
The IGU is the official geological mapping agency of the country,
with functions comparable to those of the US Geological Survey. Geological
maps are issued principally for the use of the Ministerio de Obras Ablicas.
The small staff consists of eight engineer-geologists, eight assistants,
and one draftsman, and the number of maps issued is also small.
Only geological maps of Uruguay are published, usually to illustrate
articles in bulletins of the IGU. Generalized geological maps have also
been made of the entire country at 1:750,000, of northeastern Uruguay at
1:500,000, and of each of the departamentos of Cerro Largo, Colonia,
Durazno, Paysandu!, Rivera, Soriano, TacuarembOc and Treinta y Tres at
1:250,000. Most of the maps are dated 1939 or later. Work is now in
progress on geologic maps of the departamentos of Flores and San Jose' at
1:250,000 and of Montevideo at 1:100,000. When all the departimentos
have been covered, it is planned to make a set of more detailed maps at
1:200,000, each with an accompanying explanatory folio.
Information shown an the maps is taken from geological and geographical
data in the IGU files, which are checked and supplemented by reconnaissance
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burveys by IOU geologists. One cartographer-draftsman does most of the draft-
ing by hand. Geological formations are indicated by full color or line symbols,
but no relief is shown. Only geological and major cultural and hydrographic
features are given. About half the maps have no coordinates and the remainder
have stub coordinates. Legends are simple but adequate. Since all the maps
are generalized, they are not recommended even as bases for other work.
8. Oficina Nacional de Turismo (ONT), Comisi4n Nacional de Turismo
(National Tourist Office, National Tourist Commission)
Av. Sarandi 394, Montevideo
Dr. Gualberto Rodriquez Larreta, General Manager
Dr. Pablo Marcotte, Chief of Information
The ONT is the operating section of the Comision Nacional de Turismo
and the official agency for the dissemination of tourist information. It
produces maps of roads and recreation areas of Uruguay for public dis-
tribution. Because of inadequate ONT equipment, large-sized ONT maps are
usually drafted in the cartographic section of the Servicio Geografico
Militar.
A 1:1,000,000 road map of Uruguay is issued irregularly, and small
maps of recreation areas and route strips for roads leading from Montevideo
to the various beaches and resorts are issued for each summer season.
Only maps of these types are scheduled for the near future, although town
plans of resort areas may be added.
Data for the road map are Obtained from the files of the ONT and of
the Direccion de Vialidad of the Ministerio de Obras Pliblicas. Both sources
are up to date and reliable. The ONT 1:1,000,000 map is compiled? and drafted
^ in the cartographic section of the SGM and is neat, clear, detailed and ac-
curate. Most of the other ONT maps are gaudy and overly generalized.
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9. Seccion de Elltadistica AgronOmica (SEA), Direccion de Agronamia,
Ministerio de Ganaderia y Agricultura (Agronomic Statistics Section,
Bureau of Agronomy, Ministry of Livestock and Agriculture)
Calle Uruguay 821, Montevideo
Ing. Agron. Alfredo L. Weiss, Chief, Agronomic Statistics Section
Ing. Agron. Ricardo Christophersen, Assistant Chief
The SEA is one of the small map-making offices under the Ministerio
de Agricultura. Only small specialized maps of agricultural production in
Uruguay are prepared, usually for publication in reports or in the statisti-
cal bulletin. A set of maps and overlays for all the major agricultural
products of the country was prepared for exhibition at the Uruguayan In-
formation Bureau in New York City in 1946. Few maps, however, have been
published to date.
The principal source materials used are officials statistical data
received by police divisions (counties). The information is plotted on
base maps by the one cartographer-draftsman an the staff. All work is
done entirely by hand. The following maps made by SEA are available in
Washington at present:
1. Rendimientos medios de la cosecha de trigo 1948/49, por secciones
policiales con mad de 500 hectares de cultivo. (Average yield of
the crop of wheat 1948/49, by police divisions having more than
500 hectares in cultivation)
2. DistribuciOn del Area sembrada con cebada cosecha de 1948/49
(Distribution of the area sown with barley, 1948/49 crop)
3. DistribuciOn del area sembrada con trigo, cosecha de 1948/49
(Distribution of the area sown with wheat, 1948/49 crop)
4. Mapa del Uruguay con la delimitaciOn aproximada de las secciones
policiales
(Map of Uruguay showing the approximate limits of police divi-
sions)
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10. Servicio Cooperativo Interamericano de Salud.Pilblica (SCISP),
Ministerio de Salud Pdblica (Inter-American Cooperative Service for Public
Health, Ministry of Public Health)
Av. 18 de Julio 2083/ Montevideo
H. Jackson Davis, M.D., Chief of Party
The SCISP is operated jointly by the Uruguayan Ministerio de Salud
Pliblica and the US Department of State for the purpose of maintaining
public health service in Uruguay. No regular cartographic programs have
been followed, and SCISP has only one part-time draftsman. The only maps
now in progress are a series of city and town plans for use in connection
with the yellow fever eradication program. Most of the plans are drafted
in the Ministerio de Salud Publica, with some financial and drafting as-
sistance from SCISP.
11. Servicio GeogrEffico Militar, Estado Mayor del Ejercito (SGM),
Ministerio de Defensa Nacional (Military Geographic Service, General Staff
of the Army, Ministry of National Defense)
Av. 8 de Octubre 3255, Montevideo
Cnel. Alberto Bergalli, Director
Tte. Cnel. Saul Graceras, Assistant Director and Technical Inspector
Tte. Cnel. Cesar R. Villalba, Chief, Division of Cartography
Tte. Cnel. Alberto Fossemalle, Chief, Division of Topography
Major Hugo Frigerio Herrn, Chief, Division of Geodesy
The SGM is the official Uruguayan agency responsible for geodetic
control and topographic mapping. It was organized in 1913 for the purposes
of establishing a trigonometric net for the country and compiling a topo-
graphic map that could be used by all official agencies as an accurate base
for their work. In size of staff and possibly in the total number of maps
produced, it is the largest map-making agency in the country. Of the 60
^ or more persons working in the organization, 48 are field surveyors who
serve on four 12-man teams, only three or four are cartographers, and most
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of the remainder are on the administrative staff.
Only topographic maps of Uruguay are produced by the SGM, the prin-
cipal publication being the sheets of the 1:50,000 set, which is eventually
to cover the entire country. To date, maps have been prodAced at three
scales -- 1:20,00060 1:50,000, and 1:200,000. A 9-sheet topographic map at
1:20,000 of the Department of Montevideo was published in 1920, but no
revisions have been made nor additional sheets issued, and no others are
planned until the entire country is mapped at the basic scale of 1:50,000.
Between 1926 and 1950, only 34 sheets at 1:50,000 were published. These
cover the southern coastal area of Uruguay, less than 10 percent of the
total area. Surveys have been completed for three more sheets and are in
progress for two others. Of the 25 projected sheets at 1:200,000 that
are to be compiled from published sheets of the 1:50,000 set, only one has
been completed. No others are contemplated until more 1:50,000 coverage
is available.
The mapping program of the SGM is progressing slowly because the four
surveying teams now available for field work usually cover about 250 square
miles -- sufficient for only one sheet at 1:50,000 -- during the eight
months spent in the field each year. Since no funds are available for
additional personnel or field and office equipment, no increase in pro-
duction can be expected in the near future.
SGM field surveys at 1:20,000 are the principal source materials for
the 1:50,000 sheets. Other sources include some old geodetic and topo-
graphic data acquired from the Ministerio de Obras Pliblicas when the SCM
Was established in 1913, and recent triangulation and leveling of high
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quality done by the SGM, the Servicio HidrogrAfico de la Marina, and by
various offices in the Ministerio de Obras PUblicas.
Cartographic methods of the SGM are not up to date in all respects.
Although trimetrogon aerial photographs are available, the organization
has no equipment or personnel trained for aerial photogrammetric work.
All SGM maps are printed in the Imprenta Nacional (Government Printing
Office).
In cartographic presentation, amount of detail, and accuracy, the
1:50,000 maps are comparable to the best maps of the US Geological Survey
or Army Map Service.
12. Servicio Hidrogreifico de la Marina (SH-M), Ministerio de Defensa
Nacional (Hydrographic Service of the Navy, Ministry of National Defense)
Av. de las Instrucciones 1063, Montevideo
Capit4n de Fyagata Sergio Esteves, Director General
Tte. de Navio Atahualpa Soto, Chief, Sections of Administration and As-
tronomy
Tte. de Navio Carlos Filippini, Chief, Section of Hydrography and Cartography
The SH-M is the official hydrographic office of the Uruguayan Navy,
and has the combined functions of the US Navy Hydrographic Office, Coast
and Geodetic Survey, and Coast Guard. Charts of Uruguayan coastal waters
and navigable rivers are made for the use of the Navy and Merchant Marine.
The staff is small, and to date only about 25 sheets of coastal areas and
13 of the Santa Lucia River have been published, although many of the charts
have been revised.
Unlike the US Navy Hydrographic Office and the British Admiralty, the
SH-M compiles and prints charts of Uruguayan waters only. It does not
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reproduce charts issued by other countries, but master copies of the major
foreign charts are kept up to date for reference use.
The entire coast of Uruguay has been mapped at scales ranging from
1:20,000 to 1:300,000, and plans have been issued for the major cities
and ports at 1:5,000 to 1:20,000. The Uruguay River has been charted in
part, and the Santa Lucia River has been charted on 13 sheets at 1:10,000.
At present, survey parties are working an the remainder of the Uruguay
River and its many islands, the lake formed by damming the Rio Negro, and
revisions of some already published charts.
As Uruguay is a small country with a comparatively short seacoast
and few navigable rivers, a staff of three cartographer-draftsmen is able
to perform all the work required. Most of the drafting and lettering is
done by hand, but as a result of long training the draftsmen are skilled
and rapid. The SH-M has no printing establishment of its own and all of
its charts are printed by the Imprenta Nacional.
The Uruguayan hydrographic charts are comparable in content and
quality of drafting to those of Brazil and Argentina, which are generally
considered the best charts issued in Latin America. SH-M has been com-
mended by US Navy Hydrographic Office officials for the excellence of its
charts. Control and hydrographic data, which are taken from original
surveys by SH-M personnel, are reliable.
13. Servicio Meteoroldgico del Uruguay (SMU), InspecciOn General de
la Marina, Ministerio de Defensa Nacional (Uruguayan Meteorological Ser-
vice, General Inspectorate of the Navy, Ministry of National Defense)
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Calle Cerrito 73, Montevideo
Cap,itern de Navio Samuel Galimberti, Director
Anibal Ribeiro Reissig, Technical Inspector and Chief of Climatological
Investigation Division
The SMU is the official weather bureau of the country. Data for
study, compilation, and publication are collected from 22 meteorological
stations and over 425 rainfall stations. Although daily synoptic weather
maps are prepared, lack of funds prevents, their publication. Charts,
diagrams, and graphs of weather conditions are also prepared but seldom
published. A Boletin is published at irregular intervals.
B. Private Map Publishers
14. Gue.as Aralho
Calle MisionAs 1523, E5c. 2, Montevideo
Horacio Aralijo Villagran, Owner-manager
The Guias Aralijo is a private company producing plans and street guides
for the city of Montevideo. One or more draftsmen are hired when necessary
to revise the regular 1:20,000 and 1:40,000 plans. The 1:20,000 plan is
revised about every 5 years, whereas the 1:40,000 plan, issued as part of
the street, bus, and streetcar guide, is revised every other year.
15. Prof. Horacio Ureta Martinez
Prof. Ureta Martinez is the best private cartographer in Uruguay. At
present he has no official connections in Uruguay, having joined the carto-
graphic staff of the United Nations Secretariat in New York in July 1950.
At one time, however, he was on the staff of the Seccidn de Estadilstica
AgrondMica of the Ministerio de Agricultura, where he worked on the com-
pilation of a number of maps of the departments of Uruguay. His most re-
cent publications are maps for school and propaganda use.
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Working alone, Prof. Ureta Martinez has produced a large number of
maps in recent years. Most of these are of Uruguay, but he has also made
wall maps, an atlas, and illustrations for geography textbooks that cover
a number of foreign countries and continents. He has published 11 maps
of departments of Uruguay at the scales of 1:150,000 and 1:200,000, two
general maps at approximately 1:1,000,000 (1945), a Texaco road map at a-
bout 1:1,200,000, and a 1:600,000 pictorial relief map with political,
economic, and climatic insets (1950). Source material used included of-
ficial surveys by the Servicio Geogrgfico Militar, Servicio Hidrogrgfico
de la Marina, Direccidn de Topografal Direccidn de Hidrografial and the
Direccidn de Vialidad. Prof. Ureta Martnez owns a set of aerial photo-
graphs taken by the 6th Reconnaissance Squadron of the US Air Force for
its 1:500,000 preliminary base of Uruguay, and used these photos for
checking any data of doubtful accuracy. On some of his recent maps,
Prof. Ureta Martinez has used modern labor-saving techniques, such as the
application of preprinted patterns. His maps are neat and legible, con-
tain a large amount of accurate detail, and are reliable. They can be
reproduced in black and white, without much loss of detail, and should be
of considerable use to map compilers in the US.
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III. GLOSSARY
Name of Agency Abbreviation
1. Centro Automovili'stico del Uruguay
(Uruguayan Autamobiling Center)
2. Comisidil de Idmites y Caracterizacidn de
Fronteras Uruguay-Brasil, Ministerio de
Relaciones Exteriores
(Commission on the Limits and Description
of the Uruguay-Brazil Boundary, Ministry
of Foreign Relations)
3. Comisidn Tecnica y Financiera de los Obras
Hidroelectricas del RiO Negro
(Technical and Financial Commission of
the Rio Negro Hydroelectric Works)
4. Direccigil de Hidrografia, Ministerio de DH
Obras Publicas
(Bureau of Hydrography, Ministry of
Public Works)
5. DirecciOn de Saneamiento, Ministerio de DS
Obras ltiblicas
(Bureau of Sanitation, Ministry of
Public Works)
6. Direccidh de TopografA, Ministerio de DT
Obras Pdblicas
(Bureau of Topography, Ministry of
Public Works)
7. Direccidn de Vialidad, Ministerio de DV
Obras Piblicas
(Bureau of Public Roads, Ministry of
Public Works)
8. Direccia6 General de Cadastro, Ministerio DGC
de Hacienda
(General Cadastral Bureau, Ministry of
Finance)
CAU
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Rione
9. Federacian Uruguaya de Educacicfn Vial
(Uruguayan Federation or Road Education)
10. Gulias Araii!jo
(Aratijo Guidebooks)
FUEV
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Name of Agency Abbreviation
11. Instituto Geoldgic,a del Uruguay,
Ministerio de Industria y Trabajo
(Geologic Instituti of Uruguay
Ministry of Industry and Labor)
12. Oficina Nacional de Turisaw,
Comisidn Nacional de Turismo
(National Tourist Office, National
Tourist Commission)
13. SecciOn de EstadZstica AgrondMica,
Direccidn de Agronamia, Ministerio de
GanaderA y Agricultura
(Agronomic Statistics" Section,
Bureau of Agronomy, Ministry of
Livestock and Agriculture
14. Servici9 Cooperativo Interamericano de
Salud Publica, Ministerio de Salud
Peiblica
(Interamerican Cooperative Service
of Public Health, Ministry of Public
Health)
15. Servicio Geogrgfico Militar, Estado
Mayor del Ejercito, Ministerio de Defensa
Nacional
(Military Geographic Service, General
Staff of the.Army, Ministry of "National
Defense)
16. Servicio Eldrogrgfico de la Marina/
Ministerio de Defensa Nacional
(Hydrographic Service of the Navy,
Ministry of National Defense)
17. Servicio Meteoroldgico del Uruguay,
Inspeccioll General de la Marina,
Ministerio de Defensa Nacional
(Meteorological Service of Uruguay,
General Inspectorate of the Navy,
Ministry of National Defense)
18. Ureta Marti6z, Prof. Horacio
(independent publisher)
IGU
ONT
SEA
SC ISP
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SGM
SH-M
SMU
OW.. OM
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