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1940 Map of Mount Vernon

Name: 1940 Topographic Map of Mount Vernon
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1940
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1940

About this map

Mount Vernon serves as the central hub of this Southern Illinois survey, showing a dense grid of streets and the Fair Grounds just as the mid-century era approached. The surrounding landscape in Jefferson County and southern Marion County is defined by an incredibly dense network of rural schools and churches, reflecting a period when small, local community centers like George College School and Old Shiloh Church were the heart of social life.

Transport lines including the Southern Pacific and Louisville and Nashville railroads radiate from the city, connecting smaller settlements such as Dix, Opdyke, and Kell. The topography is marked by several prairie openings, including Little Prairie and Donahue Prairie, while the Casey Fork and Big Muddy River drainage systems carve through the agricultural fields, punctuated by many family-named schools and small cemeteries like Atkinson Cemetery.