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1912 Map of Canton

Name: 1912 Topographic Map of Canton
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1912
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1912

About this map

Canton stands as the industrial and population hub of Fulton County in the early 1900s, anchored by a dense network of coal operations and intersecting rail lines. The landscape is defined by the heavy presence of extractive industry, from Alden Mine No 6 near Farmington to the southern Star Mine No 1. This era shows a remarkably high density of rural schoolhouses, such as Hazel Dell School, Pisgah School, and Mound School, serving the many small farming townships including Joshua, Fairview, and Salem.

Major rail corridors like the Chicago Burlington and Quincy RR and the Illinois Central Electric RR connect mining settlements like Brereton and Norris to larger markets. In the northwest, the Spoon River meanders near Uniontown, while the County Farm sits just southeast of the Canton city limits, providing a look at the social and economic infrastructure of the Illinois prairie before modern consolidation.