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1946 Map of Ottawa

Name: 1946 Topographic Map of Ottawa
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1963
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1963

About this map

Starved Rock State Park and the riverfront industries of Ottawa dominate this 1946 revision. The landscape is defined by the confluence of the Fox River and the Illinois River, where the historic Illinois and Michigan Canal runs parallel to the main waterway. The map documents an intricate network of early 20th-century rural education, featuring dozens of numbered and family-named schoolhouses such as Hickory College, Ophir Center School, and Peddicord School.

South of the river, the terrain breaks into numerous named ravines and canyons, including Tonti Canyon and Kaskaskia Canyon. The transition from the industrial activity at Buffalo Rock to the recreational Chautauqua Grounds illustrates the area's dual role as a manufacturing hub and a regional destination. Transportation is anchored by the Chicago Rock Island and Pacific Railroad and the Aurora and Streator Branch, which served the outlying settlements of Wedron and Dayton.