1959 Map of Schneider

About this map

Schneider and Lake Village anchor this mid-century look at the borderlands of Lake and Newton counties, where the straightened course of the Kankakee River defines the rural landscape. The map captures an era when the New York Central and Monon railroads still provided critical transportation links through the marshy lowlands of the Kankakee River State Park. A complex network of drainage infrastructure, including the New York Central Ditch and Singleton Ditch, illustrates the massive 20th-century effort to reclaim these wetlands for agriculture and settlement.