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1952 Map of Middletown

Name: 1952 Topographic Map of Middletown
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1959
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1959

About this map

The Connecticut River serves as the dominant artery of this 1952 landscape, separating the industrial and academic hub of Middletown from Portland to the east. At the heart of the city, Wesleyan University and the prominent Indian Hill Cemetery overlook the urban center, while the New York New Haven and Hartford railroad lines and the Wilbur Cross Highway facilitate a mid-century transportation network.

Evidence of the region's evolving land use appears in the contrast between the densely settled neighborhoods of South Farms and the institutional grounds of the State Hospital and Long Lane State Farm. Further west, the terrain rises into the trap rock ridges of Lamentation Mountain, while the valleys are marked by recreational and industrial water features like Beseck Lake and the Mattabesset River. Local industry is anchored by sites like Brazos Quarry, while Wadsworth Falls State Park preserves the natural falls near Rockfall.