1983 Map of Grayling

About this map

The Au Sable River and its multiple branches define this expansive interior region of Northern Michigan in the early 1980s. Centered on the town of Grayling, the landscape is dominated by public lands and military training grounds, including the massive Camp Grayling Military Reservation and the Grayling Army Airfield. The map reveals a high concentration of recreational and ecological landmarks, such as Hartwick Pines State Park, known for its virgin pines, and the surrounding Mackinaw State Forest and Au Sable State Forest. Transportation networks include the Detroit and Mackinac RR and modern corridors like I-75. From the clear waters of Higgins Lake in the south to the small settlements of Johannesburg and Vienna Corners in the north, the map captures a period when the timber-and-transit economy had transitioned fully into one of conservation and seasonal tourism.