1946 Map of Lexington

About this map

Lexington and its surrounding Middlesex County neighbors appear here in a post-war landscape defined by dense residential growth and large-scale institutional grounds. The map captures an era when several significant health and educational facilities occupied extensive acreage, including the Metropolitan State Hospital, Middlesex County Sanatorium, and McLean Hospital in Belmont. Transportation across this suburban corridor relies on the Boston and Maine railroad network, connecting villages like East Lexington and Waverley to the larger centers. In the southern portion, Cambridge reveals a cluster of academic and civic sites, notably Harvard College and the Observatory near Fresh Pond. These details, alongside local landmarks like Ye Old Burying Ground, provide a clear picture of the region's transition from colonial crossroads to a critical hub of the Massachusetts interior.