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1968 Map of Pontiac North

Name: 1968 Topographic Map of Pontiac North
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1971
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1971

About this map

The Pontiac State Hospital and the busy hub of Pontiac dominate the southern portion of this landscape, showing a period of intense civic and institutional growth just before the 1970s. The urban grid is dense with neighborhood schools and parks, such as Wisner Sch and Oakland Park, while the Grand Trunk Western railroad cuts through the city center, marking its industrial backbone. This survey captures a moment when the expanding suburban reaches of Drayton Plains and Clintonville were bridging the gap between the historic city core and the lake-dotted hills to the north.

North of the city, the character of the land shifts to a glaciated terrain of kettle lakes and ridges. Pine Knob and Mt Judah overlook a series of water bodies including Lake Angelus and Voorheis Lake. The presence of the McMath-Hulbert Observatory near Lake Angelus highlights the area's suitability for scientific observation away from the immediate city lights, even as new residential developments and Gravel Pits indicate the ongoing expansion of the metro region.