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1943 Map of Blockton

Name: 1943 Topographic Map of Blockton
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1943
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1943

About this map

Irena sits at the heart of this rural landscape where the border between Iowa and Missouri meets. Surveyed in the early 1940s, the map reveals a highly decentralized community structure, defined by a remarkable density of one-room schoolhouses such as Pleasant Valley Sch, Honey Grove Sch, and Victory Sch. These school labels, along with landmarks like Jackson Ch, highlight the social fabric of the townships of Union, Fletchall, and Summit during a period of peak agricultural settlement.

The drainage of the Middle Fork Grand River and the East Fork Grand River dictates the movement across the terrain, with the Chicago Burlington and Quincy railroad providing the essential industrial link to the wider region. An expansive Unsurveyed Area to the north creates a striking contrast with the detailed rural grid of the southern half, marking the limits of the period's topographic recording.