1932 Map of Helena SE

About this map

The Chicago and Northwestern railroad and the Escanaba River define the development of this northern Michigan landscape during the early 1930s. This survey, compiled from early Air Corps aerial photography, captures a transition in land use within the township of Ewing. While the presence of Sherkeys Camp and Finn Camp suggests a history tied to seasonal labor or logging, the establishment of the Town Hall Sch, Ewing Sch No 1, and Lincoln Sch indicates a maturing community of permanent settlers. The network of section lines and secondary roads reveals how residents navigated the wetlands around Hunter's Brook and the Beaver Branch of the river. The map's detail provides a unique look at the rural infrastructure of Marquette County before the widespread modernization of the mid-20th century.