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Historical USGS Topo Maps: What They Show and How to Use Them

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Old USGS topographic maps are a snapshot of the land at the time they were drawn: roads that have since been abandoned, rail lines, mines, homesteads and place names that newer maps leave off. Here is what the historical collection holds, what to watch out for, and how to carry one on your phone with your GPS position.

What the Historical Topographic Map Collection is

The U.S. Geological Survey has scanned its printed topographic maps, originally published between 1884 and 2006, into the Historical Topographic Map Collection. USGS describes it as more than 185,000 high-resolution, georeferenced files covering all scales and editions of its printed topographic maps, from 1:250,000 to the most detailed. You can browse and download them free with USGS’s topoView, as GeoPDF, GeoTIFF, JPEG or KMZ files.

A series of maps of one area can show how it looked as early as the 1880s and how it changed edition by edition.

The 15-minute maps

Before the familiar 7.5-minute quadrangles covered the country, much of it was mapped on 15-minute sheets at 1:62,500 (about one inch to a mile). Each 15-minute sheet covers the area of four 7.5-minute quads, so one sheet takes in a whole drainage or hunting area. Many of these maps date from the first half of the 1900s, which is exactly why people want them: they can show old roads, trails, rail grades, mines, cemeteries, schools and settlements that no longer appear on current maps.

Cartahaven has the 15-minute historical maps for every state, free with an account. Browse them by state, for example Pennsylvania historical topo maps, Colorado or California.

What to watch out for

  • The land has changed. A road or trail on a 1940s map may be gone, gated or on private land now. Use an old map to find things, and a current map, such as a current USGS topo or a motor vehicle use map, to decide where you may go.
  • Land ownership isn’t on it. Historical topos don’t show today’s public and private land. Check the land manager’s current maps before you walk onto anything.
  • Older datum. Many older USGS maps use the North American Datum of 1927 (NAD27). USGS notes that coordinates in the newer NAD83 datum can be hundreds of meters away from coordinates in older datums. A GeoPDF records its datum, and a map app that reads it correctly puts your GPS position in the right place; reading coordinates off the paper grid by hand, you have to account for it yourself.
  • Accuracy of the time. Survey methods were less exact than today’s, and some features were sketched in. Treat positions on old sheets as close, not exact.

Using a historical topo on your phone, offline

Download the GeoPDF before you lose signal and open it in a map app that reads GeoPDFs. Your phone’s GPS works without a cell connection, so the app can show your position on the old map in the field. It helps to carry a current map of the same area too, and switch between them.

Old maps are a great way to find history on the ground, but they are not permission to be there. Posted signs, current land-manager maps and the landowner’s word govern.