1888 Map of New Bedford

About this map

New Bedford serves as the industrial and maritime hub of this South Coast landscape in the late nineteenth century. The dense grid of the city faces Fairhaven across the Acushnet River, while three primary rail corridors, including the Fall River and New Bedford Railroad, converge on the harbor. The map documents a coastal economy defined by its maritime infrastructure, from the Clarks Point Light guarding the entrance to New Bedford Harbor to the small village of Oxford and the shipyards at Mattapoisett.