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1893 Map of Ramapo

Name: 1893 Topographic Map of Ramapo
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1908
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1908

About this map

The Ramapo Mountains dominate the northwestern landscape of this late 19th-century survey, creating a topographical barrier between the developing villages of Orange and Rockland counties. The Ramapo River and Mahwah River valleys serve as vital corridors for transportation, most notably for the New York Lake Erie and Western Railroad which snakes through Sloatsburg and Suffern. The map reveals a transition from the rugged highlands to the more densely settled lowlands of Orvil and Washington townships.

Local historians can trace early transportation nodes such as Pomona Station and Nanet Junction, or locate smaller, vanished place names like Masonicus and Ladentown. The intricate network of smaller waterways, including Hohokus Creek and Pascack Creek, highlights the importance of drainage and water power to the milling and residential growth of towns like Allendale, Park Ridge, and Montvale along the New Jersey and New York Railroad.