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1912 Map of New Athens

Name: 1912 Topographic Map of New Athens
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1912
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1912

About this map

Silver Creek and the winding Kaskaskia River define the agricultural landscape of south-central St. Clair County on the eve of the First World War. This territory, spanning from Mascoutah in the north to Marissa in the south, shows a mature network of early-twentieth-century infrastructure. Three major railroads—the Louisville and Nashville RR, Illinois Central RR, and St. Louis and Cairo RR—bisect the prairies, dictating the growth of shipping points like Freeburg and Lenzburg.

Genealogists can identify dozens of localized community hubs, including the Greenmount Cem and a dense concentration of rural schoolhouses such as Plum Hill School, Batdorf School, and Blackjack School. The terrain is punctuated by small lakes and ridges like Tamara wa Ridge and Haubers Hill, while the Boundary Line between St. Clair and Monroe counties marks the western edge of the survey near Hecker.