1894 Map of Carmel

About this map

The Croton River and its managed tributaries dominate this landscape on the New York and Connecticut border during the late nineteenth century. At this moment in the region's development, the area serves as a critical watershed for the New York City water supply system, evidenced by the recently constructed West Branch Reservoir, Middle Branch Reservoir, and Titicus Reservoir. The industrial and transportation hub at Brewster highlights the convergence of the Harlem Div and the New York and New England RR, which supported local industry like the Tilly Foster Mine. Beyond the infrastructure of the reservoirs, the survey captures long-established rural centers such as North Salem, Somers, and South Salem, alongside natural water bodies like Lake Mahopac and Lake Gleneida. The map illustrates a transitional period where agricultural life and small-town commerce at Coles Mills and Farmer Mills existed alongside the massive engineering projects required to quench the thirst of the growing metropolis to the south.