So desperate was the British Navy for detailed surveys of the New England coast that Des Barres printed many of his charts before they were half finished. Some lacked titles and topographic features. Others were mere outlines of small sections of the coast. In an effort to extend the coverage of his atlas, Des Barres compiled and edited the surveys of Holland, DeBrahm, and others, but he eventually compromised the quality of his work by inserting siege and battle maps, some of which possessed little or no nautical value. Thomas Hype Page's plan of the siege of Boston is informative on the disposition of troops and fortifications, but Page was much too casual in his representation of the Massachusetts coast.
Most maps drawn during the war reflect the exigencies of the struggle.
Occasionally, a campaign map will be found imposed on a carefully executed map from an earlier period, but the majority are technically poor. Among the maps drawn in America, the exceptions are the ones that were drawn over a period of weeks or months such as during a lengthy siege or winter encampment. By far the worst examples are maps by Hessian and Spanish engineers. The material also reflects an imbalance in the events covered. For example, there are few good maps, manuscript or printed, of the battles of Cowpens, Camden, or Guilford Courthouse, whereas the sieges of Yorktown, Virginia, appear on numerous maps.