Petrol Company Road Maps from Algeria

Shell was a market leader across the Maghreb since the first filling stations were opened. This map from Foldex (France) SARL is dated 1938 and similar to those being sold by Shell's French operation at the time. It consisted of two sheets printed on thin paper, and glued and folded so as to open out into 10 folds. One sheet was dedicated to Algeria at 1:1,000,000; the other to Morocco (at a smaller scale) and Tunisia. Each sheet had inset maps, described as "cartouches", and showing the areas around the four main cities of Algiers, Oran, Casablanca, Rabat and Tunis (but not Tangiers) at a larger scale - 1:300,000 for Algeria, but 1:500,000 elsewhere. Although printed in France (and the copy shown here was sold in Britain for 5/-), the three Shell companies in the region were credited with having edited the map, to prove local knowledge.

Shell also regularly sponsored a guide book in French with red board covers for automobile and air tourists visiting the Sahara. The earliest known version dates from the 1934-5 season, published on 30 September 1934, as the tourist season is of course winter. This had 136 pages and simple line maps of Saharan settlements and their air strips, as well as 32 photographs of points of interest or Shell desert pumps. By the 1938 edition it had grown to about 450 pages of maps of cities and airports and routes. Both had a pasted in Shell photo-map of the region. After the War, the guides continued in a very similar format, still produced by Shell (but lacking the logo on the cover). The 1955 edition had 345 pages, and a slip pocket in the rear cover containing Michelin map No. 152 Sahara.
Far right image of a Shell pump in the desert at Arak, courtesy Richard Horwitz

After the war Shell continued to sell maps created for it by Foldex, as in this 1957 map of Algeria and Tunisia. Algeria was at a slightly smaller scale 1:900,000 (vs 1:750,000), and there were larger scale inserts of the most populous region around each capital city.
Two years later Shell also offered a booklet in French of Algiers, with detailed city maps on 28 pages, Shell adverts and station locations.
Images courtesy Richard Horwitz

Adventurers continued to cross the Sahara in the period between the War and Algerian independence. Meeting the need for at least reasonably reliable information, the four Shell companies on either side of the Sahara (Algérie, l'Afrique Équatoriale, l'Afrique Occidentale & West Africa) jointly published a book of African Itineraries, probably in the mid-1950s from the design. Measuring approximately 325 by 240mm, it contained 25 pages of b/w strip maps, with a brief commentary on either side (French on the left, English on the right) indicating road conditions (including gutters) and track junctions, the availability of hotels, water and petrol, and notable sights. Distances were in both miles and kilometres and directions assumed travel was from North to South. The routes described started at Oran and Algiers, and ran South across the Sahara to Kano in Nigeria, from where a single route continued SE to Bangassou on the border of the Belgian Congo.

Shell produced a basic map of the main Sahara routes in 1959, which was updated in 1960 and 1961 (the edition shown here). It showed places in the desert where Shell or other fuels could be bought on a very simple map, against a background of cave paintings.

Esso was a significant player in the Algerian market prior to its nationalisation. The maps shown here date from 1948 (left) and 1956 respectively. The earlier map was locally printed, and credited to Editions Esso Alger, with cover photos of Oran and Constantine. It was at a scale of 1:1,500,000 and had insets maps of the Algiers environs and Sahara routes. The later map was printed in France by Blondel la Rougery, to designs created by General Drafting Co. One side had a map of the country at 1:1,800,000 with two insets for each Algiers and Oran to show both the town and environs. The reverse showed the three Maghreb countries at 1:4,000,000, including thumbnail sketches of main points of interest on the map. Motorists planning a journey in North Africa were advised to write to the Esso Touring Service in Paris for route information. The front cover shows a dry river bed, described as Bou Saada, La Rivière.
1948 Image courtesy Jon Roma

BP and Mobil were also active in the Algerian market, with BP entering soon after the Second World War, and Mobil acquiring the CIP (Compagnie Industrielle des Pétroles de l'Afrique du Nord) interests. Both maps shown here are based on a Michelin edition and cover both Algeria and Tunisia; the Mobil map has reversible covers (with the other side shown on the Tunisia page). The Mobil map is dated 1958 and the BP map is from a couple of years later.

BP image courtesy Jon Roma; Mobil image courtesy Mark Greaves

This booklet was published in 1961 by Alger-Guide and was the 37th edition of its guide to the city and surrounding area. Its 132 pages included addresses for many services and businesses, including lists of the Shell, Esso and Mobil service stations in the city and Department of Algiers. The three brands had 35, 49 and 45 outlets respectively. It contained two fold out maps, printed on thin paper and carrying numerous adverts (but not for petrol) - one a street plan of the city, and the other showing the environs at 1:200,000.

It is probable that the other international petrol companies, including Total (which had acquired the Société Algéienne des Pétroles Mory) and possibly earlier CIP would have issued road maps. Sonatrach may also have published maps after nationalisation. If you have a map from one of these companies, or could send me a scan of such a map, or - better still - the map itself, then please send me an e-mail!

This photograph of a Total station was probably taken in Southern Algeria in the early 1960s. Image courtesy of Total.

Total did publish a map of the Hassi-Messaoud oil field area with its joint venture partner SN Repal (Société nationale de recherche et d'exploitation de pétrole en Algérie). Dating from 1960, it shows oil pipelines as well as roads and wells. The cover for the Northern zone was blue for Total; the reverse side had a red cover for SN Repal, which became part of the UFP group in 1960 and subsequently part of Elf-Erap.