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1894 Map of Atlantic City

Name: 1894 Topographic Map of Atlantic City
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1894
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1894

About this map

Atlantic City stands as the primary urban center in this coastal survey, defined by its emerging grid and the convergence of several major rail lines including the Philadelphia & Atlantic City Railroad and the West Jersey and Atlantic Railroad. The landscape is a complex network of salt marshes and tidal channels, where Main Channel and Brigantine Channel weave through vast estuaries. Several Life Saving Stations are positioned along the barrier islands of Island Beach and Brigantine Beach, signaling the maritime dangers of the late nineteenth-century Jersey Shore.

Mainland settlements such as Smithville, Leeds Point, and Oceanville are established along the higher ground bordering the wetlands, connected by early roads near Doughty Creek. Notable landmarks include the Absecon Light, which served as a critical navigational aid for vessels navigating the Brigantine Inlet and Absecon Inlet. This era captures the region just as the railroad-driven resort economy was transforming the sandbars into a premier destination.