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1956 Map of Quincy

Name: 1956 Topographic Map of Quincy
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1967
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1967

About this map

The Mississippi River and Illinois River dominate this mid-century landscape, carving through the fertile borderlands between Illinois and Missouri. Major river hubs like Quincy and Hannibal serve as anchors for a dense network of rail lines, including the Chicago Burlington and Quincy RR and the Wabash RR, which transported the region's agricultural wealth. The map captures the complex river morphology of the era, noting numerous features such as Middleton Island and the Mark Twain National Wildlife Refuge.

Further inland, the transition from river bottomlands to the interior plains is marked by a scattering of county seats and agricultural centers like Jacksonville, Jerseyville, and Mexico. Conservation areas such as Siloam Springs State Park and Pere Marquette State Park indicate a shift toward preserving the natural bluffs and watersheds of the Cuivre River and Salt River systems before late-20th-century development altered the rural character.