1947 Map of La Salle

About this map

The Illinois River corridor serves as the industrial and logistical heart of this region, where the twin cities of La Salle and Peru sit at a critical intersection of waterway and rail traffic. By the late 1940s, the landscape reflects a mature industrial economy, with the Chicago Rock Island and Pacific RR and the Illinois Central RR facilitating heavy transport alongside the river and its southern banks near Oglesby. The topography is sharply defined by the Vermilion River and Little Vermilion River, which carve deep valleys into the prairie before meeting the main river channel near Split Rock. South of the river, the presence of Deer Park and Matthiessen Park highlights the early preservation of the area's unique geological features. Further inland, the map captures a rural network of small-town centers like Troy Grove and Arlington, interspersed with legacy institutions such as St Bedes College and numerous named rural schoolhouses like Waltham School and Whipple School.