The USGS had given away and auctioned off nearly 4000 of their copper plates. Since than an abundance of Lore swirls around and needs to be corrected. Opposite of general Statement, these Plates are etched, not engraved, only needed corrections and changes were actually engraved. The issued Maps from these Plates were printed in Stone Litho, these Copper Plates were only used once to create a Print on Albumen Paper which could be transferred to stone and thus printed. The markings for registration on the Copper Plates are specific to Stone Lithography. The sets of Copper Plates don't register within each set at all, they differ up to half an Inch in alignment. As I have a Patron who is an avid Map Collector and acquired quite a number of important Sets, I can show here the FIRST Map printed from the Copper Plates in Register.

*For more information on the original sale - https://www.usgs.gov/news/copper-plates-gone-sort

**Click on external link below for images of the new edition.