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1932 Map of Harvard

Name: 1932 Topographic Map of Harvard
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1932
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1932

About this map

Harvard serves as the central hub of this 1932 survey, where the Chicago and Northwestern rail lines intersect amidst a dense landscape of rural school districts and family farms. The map documents a transition in regional transit, noting the Chicago and Northwestern Electric (Abandoned) line running south toward Marengo. This area of McHenry and Boone Counties is defined by its watercourses, specifically the Piscacasaw Creek and the Kishwaukee River, which shaped the placement of early settlements like Chemung and Lawrence.

Genealogists will find an incredible density of named rural schools, such as Hoppen School, County Line School, and Island School, which provided the social fabric for these agrarian townships before district consolidation. Notable landmarks include the Norwegian Ch near the Wisconsin border and the proximity of Big Foot Prairie to the Walworth and McHenry County line, offering a precise look at the northern Illinois borderlands during the early 1930s.