1953 Map of Symerton

About this map

The sprawling industrial footprint of the Joliet Arsenal dominates the northern portion of this Illinois landscape during the early 1950s. This massive federal installation, served by the Government Railroad, stands in sharp contrast to the surrounding agricultural townships of Florence, Wilton, and Wesley. The terrain is marked by the diagonal path of the Old Indian Boundary, which slices through the section lines and underscores the region's early colonial surveying history.