Loading map...

1901 Map of Gunpowder

Name: 1901 Topographic Map of Gunpowder
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1922
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1922

About this map

The Gunpowder River and Bush River define this coastal landscape where the piedmont slopes toward the Chesapeake Bay. At the turn of the century, the region was a complex network of established milling villages and tidewater landings. Significant industrial and transit corridors are evident, including the Philadelphia Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad and the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, which cut across the numerous creeks and inlets of the bay.

Local history is preserved in names like Franklinville and Joppa, while the southern reaches of the map show the maritime character of Carroll Island and the isolated Pooles Island. The presence of the Battle Monument near the shore of the Bear Creek serves as a terrestrial landmark amidst a coastline heavily fragmented by peninsulas such as Bengies Pt. Creek and Dundee Cr., illustrating the intricate relationship between the inland settlements and the bay's tidal waters.