1899 Map of Harrisburg

About this map

The Susquehanna River dominates this late-nineteenth-century landscape, carving through a series of parallel ridges including Peters Mountain, Second Mountain, and Blue Mountain. The state capital, Harrisburg, is shown as a developed grid at the southern end of the sheet, where the State Lunatic Asylum and the Paxtang area signify the city's outward growth. The era’s industrial backbone is clearly visible in the extensive transport network, featuring the Pennsylvania Canal (Abandoned) tracing the riverbank and the complex junctions of the Northern Central R. R. and the Pennsylvania Railroad. To the north, the river is dotted with large landforms like Haldeman Island and Clemson Island, while the gaps in the ridges provided strategic passage for settlements like Dauphin and Marysville. This map provides a look at the transition from canal-based commerce to the dominant railroad age in the Susquehanna Valley.