1900 Map of Canton

About this map

The Big Sioux River carves the eastern boundary of this South Dakota landscape, defining the state line with Iowa at the turn of the century. Surveyed by Jno. H. Renshawe and his team in the late 1890s, the terrain is a grid of agricultural townships like Springdale and Delaware, interconnected by a dense network of competing rail lines. The Chicago Milwaukee and St. Paul R.R. and the Chicago and Northwestern R.R. facilitate the growth of early prairie hubs such as Canton and Lennox. Smaller settlements like Worthing, Harrisburg, and Beresford appear as established rail stops during this era of rapid expansion. To the west, the Vermilion River snakes through Riverside, while numerous local watercourses such as Beaver Creek and Saddle Creek dictate the placement of early farms and pioneer homesteads across Lincoln, Turner, and Clay counties.