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United States Geological Survey (USGS)
The National Map

Portion of an early topographic map from the JW Powell expedition. 
Source: Library of Congress In the years following the Civil War, rivalries among the four separate Great Surveys of the American West surveys led Congress in 1878 to ask the National Academy of Sciences recommend a plan for surveying and mapping the Territories of the United States on a system that would "secure the best possible results at the least possible cost." The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) came into being with the Organic Act of March 3, 1879, when the 45th Congress and President Rutherford B. Hayes enacted a major portion of the reforms recommended by the National Academy.

The idea of The National Map, to provide geographic information that is basic yet versatile, comprehensive and still detailed, is not new. Rather, it is a response to a continuing, critical need for the Nation. The second Director of the USGS, John Wesley Powell, aggressively pursued topographic mapping by promoting a nationally consistent map series with completion targeted for 1900. It was a monumental undertaking. The present 7.5 minute series of USGS topographic maps is an outgrowth of Powell's initiative. Once-over national coverage, mostly at 1:24,000 scale for all of the United States (except Alaska, was completed in 1991.

USGS topographic maps are the only border-to-border collection of integrated information about the Nation's landscape.
Source: Park City East, UT. 1:24000 scale topographic map, USGS. During the first 100 years of USGS, the thousands of surveyors, photogrammetrists, cartographers, and others who labored for more than 33 million hours, using primarily manual processes, to complete the more than 55,000 USGS topographic maps covering the United States could not have foreseen the rapid acceleration of computer technology that has transformed the mapping profession today. Advances in digital cartography and geographic analysis, combined with coalescing technologies including portable computers and the Internet, now offer dramatic possibilities for meeting the increasingly sophisticated geospatial information demands of government, private industry, scientists, and the public.

The reliable and readily accessible geographic framework provided by The National Map makes it possible to pursue place­based analyses of diverse types of information, to monitor changes and detect trends, and to discover relationships between otherwise seemingly independent phenomena and processes. Publicly available geographic information from The National Map can be used for a multitude of purposes in science, business, and education, and in the delivery of government services. Enhanced and extended, geographic information from The National Map forms the basis for a wealth of commercial products.

The National Map viewer.
Source:USGS The National Map builds on the rich foundation of traditional topographic mapping of the USGS, using new tools and methods. Based on partnership relationship strategies that support sharing and ensured availability of up–to–date base geographic information, The National Map is designed to serve as a foundation for common geographic understanding among our citizens and to enable advanced applications of geographic science.