A major producer of the surveys that developed into The Atlantic Neptune was Capt. Samuel Holland, Surveyor General for the Northern District. Holland's survey of St. John's Island – modern-day Prince Edward Island – was his first task performed for The General Survey of North America, where systematic surveys were executed according to the latest scientific principles. With explicit instructions from the Board of Trade, Holland divided the island into a grid-system of counties, parishes, and townships of uniform size. French and indigenous place names were changed to commemorate British royal figures, expressing the Empire's power in the region.