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1893 Map of Rutland

Name: 1893 Topographic Map of Rutland
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1938
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1938

About this map

Rutland serves as the industrial and transportation hub of this Green Mountain landscape, where the confluence of several early rail lines meets the waters of Otter Creek. The map documents a late 19th-century Vermont economy transitioning between traditional mountain agriculture and the growing reach of the Central Vermont Railroad and the Bennington and Rutland Railroad. To the east, the terrain rises sharply toward the iconic heights of Killington Peak and Pico Peak, defining the steep drainages that feed the Cold River and Ottauquechee River.

Rural life is captured in small valley settlements like North Shrewsbury and Mendon, which are tucked into the folds of the Blue Ridge Mountain range. The survey provides a clear view of the complex hydrology of the area, from the Woodward Reservoir to the numerous brooks and ponds that supported early mills. These features illustrate the geographic constraints on settlement, as roads and rails follow the level paths of the river valleys while the higher elevations remain dominated by named peaks and ridges.