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1891 Map of DeWitt

Name: 1891 Topographic Map of DeWitt
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1917
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1917

About this map

The Wapsipinicon River meanders along the southern edge of this Clinton County landscape, defining the agricultural character of the region in the late 19th century. Surveyed in 1889, the area is crisscrossed by three major rail lines that fueled the growth of interior prairie settlements. The Chicago and North Western Railroad serves as a primary east-west corridor, linking Calamus, Grand Mound, and the established street grid of Dewitt.

Further north, the Chicago Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad cuts through the township of Welton, passing through the small community of Welton itself. The intersection of these transport routes and water sources like Silver Creek and Deep Creek supported a network of rural townships including Brookfield, Bloomfield, and Orange. This survey captures the height of the steam-rail era, showing small stations such as Quigley and Noel that anchored the local rural economy.