Raisz, Erwin (1893–1968)

Erwin Raisz played a key role in the professionalization of cartography within the discipline of geography, and deservedly he is ranked with early luminaries in the field such as John Paul Goode, Arthur Robinson, and Richard Harrison. His major contribution was in the area of landscape representation, and beginning at least a decade before World War II, he published literally thousands of maps, both large and small scale, depicting landforms throughout the world. Many were made to illustrate books, and even today his maps often continue to be used as book illustrations. He also authored General Cartography, which for decades was the only textbook in the English language on the subject.

The direction of Raisz's career seemed to have been established at his birth in 1893 ...