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1958 Map of New York

Name: 1958 Topographic Map of New York
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1958
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1958

About this map

Long Island serves as the central focus of this mid-century survey, capturing a pivotal moment of suburban expansion and industrial infrastructure. The postwar housing boom is evident in the development of Levittown, while the transportation network reflects the increasing dominance of the automobile with the Long Island Expressway and Southern State Parkway cutting across the landscape. Along the north shore, deep inlets like Oyster Bay and Smithtown Bay contrast with the long, continuous barrier beaches of the south shore, including Jones Beach and Fire Island Beach.

Significant federal and military footprints are scattered throughout the region, from the Camp Upton Military Reservation in the east to Fort Tilden at the entrance to Jamaica Bay. The aviation landscape is in transition, featuring La Guardia Field and the recently opened Idlewild Airport, which would later become JFK. The eastern terminus at Montauk Point stands at the edge of the Atlantic Ocean, far removed from the dense urban grid of New York and the East River.