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1901 Map of Nantucket

Name: 1901 Topographic Map of Nantucket
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1901
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1901

About this map

The town of Nantucket serves as the hub of this 1901 survey, which captures the island before the modern era of heavy tourism and development. A striking feature of the early 20th-century landscape is the Nantucket Central R. R., a narrow-gauge line stretching from the main harbor south to Surfside and eastward to the village of Siasconset. This rail connection highlights the island's burgeoning role as a seasonal retreat during the Gilded Age.

The topography is defined by the sweeping arcs of Coatue Beach and Coskata Beach, leading to the isolated Great Point and its Nantucket L.H. lighthouse. To the east, the map details established fishing and farming outposts like Quidnet and Polpis, alongside numerous family-named landmarks such as Folger Hill and Tom Nevers Head. The landscape is dotted with brackish ponds like Sesachacha Pond and Hummock Pond, protected by the island's low-lying glacial terrain.