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1921 Map of Monmouth

Name: 1921 Topographic Map of Monmouth
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1961
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1961

About this map

The railroad town of Monmouth serves as a major hub for western Illinois at the time of this 1920-1921 survey, where the Chicago Burlington and Quincy RR and the Minneapolis and St. Louis RR intersect. The landscape is a dense network of township sections, defined by a remarkable frequency of rural schools such as Farmers Academy, Science Hall School, and Scotchtown School. This distribution suggests a highly organized agrarian society with local education centers positioned every few miles to serve the surrounding farmsteads.

Industrial and institutional infrastructure is visible at the County Farm near Larchland, while the topography is carved by Henderson Creek and its tributaries like Talbot Creek. Smaller settlements and stops including Kirkwood, Cameron, and Berwick are connected by both the steam rail lines and the Rock Island and Southern Ry, reflecting the peak era of regional rail before the dominance of paved highways.