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1889 Map of Lawrence

Name: 1889 Topographic Map of Lawrence
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1897
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1897

About this map

The Kansas River flows through the northern reaches of this late-19th-century survey, anchoring the development of Lawrence and North Lawrence. To the south, the Marais Des Cygnes River winds through the county seat of Ottawa, revealing a landscape defined by its river valleys and an burgeoning rail network. This map documents a critical era of Kansas growth, where the Union Pacific Railroad and the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad provided the vital lifelines for agricultural commerce.

Numerous small communities like Baldwin City, Eudora, and Clinton are depicted alongside forgotten rail junctions such as Burlington Junction and Lawrence Junction. High points like Blue Mound and the Three Sisters provide topographical orientation amidst the numerous drainage basins of Wakarusa Creek and Eight Mile Creek. For the local historian, the map preserves the exact locations of smaller nineteenth-century settlements including Hesper, Vinland, and Belvoir before modern expansion altered the rural character of Douglas and Franklin counties.