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1951 Map of Norton

Name: 1951 Topographic Map of Norton
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1953
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1953

About this map

The Norton Reservoir and the Canoe River define the northern landscape of this Bristol County region, where industrial and educational institutions sit alongside extensive wetlands like the Hemlock Swamp. In the early 1950s, the New York New Haven and Hartford rail line remained a primary artery through Norton, connecting the manufacturing heritage of the Copper Works to the campus of Wheaton College. Further south, the map documents significant social infrastructure of the era, including the Myles Standish State School and the Colony State Hospital near Oakland.

Genealogists can find several family-named burial grounds like the Peckham Cem and Stevens Corner Cem. The terrain is shaped by the winding courses of the Wading River, Rumford River, and Three Mile River, which powered early development at sites like Barrowsville and Chartley. From the Lookout Tower on Great Meadows Hill to the various gravel and loam pits, the map captures a period of transition between traditional industry and institutional growth.