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1892 Map of Milwaukee

Name: 1892 Topographic Map of Milwaukee
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1897
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1897

About this map

Milwaukee's urban grid and industrial waterfront dominate this late nineteenth-century landscape, as recorded by the U.S. Geological Survey under Director J.W. Powell. The city is shown as a dense hub of transport, where the Milwaukee River and Menomonee River converge before meeting the expansive shoreline of Lake Michigan. Outside the central city core, the map reveals a transition into the more rural townships of Wauwatosa and Granville, characterized by a sparse network of roads and the emerging village of Whitefish Bay.

The importance of rail infrastructure is evident in the convergence of major lines like the Milwaukee and Northern Railroad and the Chicago Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad at Schwartzburg Junction. To the north, the small settlements of Thiensville and Mequon indicate the early development patterns of Ozaukee County. The survey captures the region just as the port and rail systems were solidifying the area's role as a primary Midwestern commercial center.