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1886 Map of Lawrence

Name: 1886 Topographic Map of Lawrence
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1886
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1886

About this map

The Merrimac River serves as the industrial and geographic anchor for this late 19th-century landscape, driving the growth of Lawrence and its surrounding mill towns. This survey, updated with 1917 revisions, reveals a dense network of transportation and institutional land use. Notable landmarks include the Andover Theological Seminary and the extensive State Almshouse complex in Tewksbury Center.

Evidence of early public works is visible through the Sewer Filters near the river and the Filter beds at Burtts Crossing Station. Small industrial hamlets such as Ballardvale and Frye Village are shown alongside a complex rail web, featuring the Main Line of Boston and Maine Railroad and the South Reading Branch. The map also details the transition from rural uplands like Holt's or Prospect Hill to the water-rich lowlands of Great Pond and Johnson's Pond.