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1956 Map of Lancaster

Name: 1956 Topographic Map of Lancaster
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1958
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1958

About this map

The Conestoga River curves through a landscape of rapid mid-century expansion on this mid-1950s survey. At the center, the city of Lancaster is a dense hub of institutional life, anchoring the region with its Courthouse, Franklin and Marshall College, and the Stevens Industrial Sch. The city’s reach extends into sprawling suburban developments such as Grandview Heights and Hamilton Park, while outlying villages like Neffsville and East Petersburg maintain their distinct identities along the Reading and Pennsylvania Railroad lines.

Local history is preserved in a network of community landmarks, from the Mennonite Home north of Shreiners to the Monastery of the Perpetual Rosary. This era captures the transition of the Pennsylvania Dutch Country as residential neighborhoods begin to surround long-established sites like Florys Mill and the City Water Works. Researchers can trace the layout of family and religious burial grounds, including Woodward Hill Cemetery and the Shaurai Shomayim Cem, set against a backdrop of industrial infrastructure like the northern Stockyards.