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1952 Map of Willard

Name: 1952 Topographic Map of Willard
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1973
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1973

About this map

The Kansas River winds through the heart of this landscape, marking the historical divide between Shawnee and Wabaunsee counties. In the early 1950s, the river valley supported a network of small agricultural hubs like Willard and Valencia, which remained tied to the major rail lines traversing the bottomlands. The Chicago Rock Island and Pacific railroad follows the southern bank, while the Union Pacific runs along the northern flats near Silver Lake.

Beyond the floodplains, the terrain transitions into the more dissected uplands of Maple Hill and Dover. Here, the community structure is revealed through rural landmarks such as West Union Sch, West Union Ch, and the Pleasant Valley Sch. Local burial grounds like Green Cem and Valencia Cem provide specific points of interest for genealogists tracing family ties to these townships during the mid-twentieth century.