Answer: Historic map availability varies with location. The USGS began topographic mapping in 1882, but detailed 24,000-scale mapping for the entire nation (excluding Alaska) was not completed until 1992. As a general rule, map scale gets smaller (less detailed) as you go back in time. Urban areas tended to be mapped and updated more frequently than rural areas. Map scales in the early part of the 20th century were typically 1:250,000-scale for western rural areas, 1:125,000-scale for rural eastern areas, and 1:62,500-scale for urban eastern areas. These are generalizations, however, and the only way to determine availability in your area-of-interest is to contact the USGS by calling 1-888-ASK-USGS sending a Fax to 703-648-5548, or sending an email to ask@usgs.gov. Please provide a description of the area in question, an explanation of the features you are seeking (examples: railroads, houses, water bodies) as well as a range of dates.
The University of New Hampshire has placed about 1,500 JPG-formatted images of historic topographic maps for New York and the New England states at http://docs.unh.edu/nhtopos/nhtopos.htm/.
The University of California at Berkeley offers current and historic topographic maps of the San Francisco Bay Area at http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/histopo/#/.
Find more information about all USGS maps at the USGS Store and click on "Maps" in the left margin.
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U.S. Department of the Interior |
U.S. Geological Survey