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1943 Map of Shrewsbury

Name: 1943 Topographic Map of Shrewsbury
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1943
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1943

About this map

The eastern edges of the Wachusett Reservoir define the northwestern corner of this 1941 survey, showing a landscape shaped by both water engineering and institutional development. The area is a nexus of major transit and civic facilities, notably featuring the Masonic Hospital and the extensive grounds of the Worcester Hospital. These large parcels sit alongside the developing residential centers of Shrewsbury and Northboro, where a dense network of local roads like Ball Hill Road and Main St connects scattered neighborhoods to the vital rail corridors of the New York New Haven and Hartford RR and the Boston and Maine RR.

To the south, Lake Quinsigamond and its islands provide a recreational anchor near Edgemere, while the Grafton State Hospital and Lyman State Sch further emphasize the region's historical role in hosting large-scale state and private institutions. The map captures a moment of transition where traditional New England farmland, represented by numerous named summits like Ball Hill and Rawson Hill, was becoming increasingly integrated into the suburban and institutional fabric of the Worcester periphery.