Titled “Baltimore,” this 1:62,500 topographical map was surveyed in 1894 and published in 1896 by the United States Geological Survey, capturing Maryland’s great port city at a decisive moment in its late nineteenth-century expansion. The map presents Baltimore not merely as an urban center, but as a landscape shaped by harbor, hills, railroads, roads, streams, and surrounding villages. Its disciplined cartographic grid and contour lines reflect the USGS’s scientific approach to national mapping, while the density of streets, transport routes, and named places conveys the vitality of a city growing rapidly beyond its older core. From Baltimore Harbor and Fort McHenry to Towson, Catonsville, and Ellicott City, the map offers a richly layered portrait of metropolitan development.

The United States Geological Survey, founded in 1879, transformed American cartography by applying systematic field survey methods to the vast and varied terrain of the country. By the time this Baltimore map appeared, the USGS had become an essential authority in mapping not only geology, but also elevation, drainage, settlement, and infrastructure. Its topographical maps were tools of science, engineering, land management, and civic planning, and this example reflects that ambition with admirable clarity. The use of contour lines gives the map a measured elegance, translating the region’s rolling Piedmont terrain into precise visual form. Around Baltimore, where rivers cut valleys and roads rise through wooded uplands, the topography is essential to understanding how the city grew.

Baltimore itself is shown as a complex urban organism, its street grid spreading around the harbor and along key corridors of movement. The presence of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad is especially evocative, recalling the city’s foundational role in American rail history and its connections westward through the Patapsco Valley. Neighborhoods and adjacent communities such as Pikesville, Woodlawn, Mount Washington, Brooklyn, and Linthicum Heights appear within a wider geography of roads, rail lines, and waterways. The map captures a city poised between older maritime commerce and modern metropolitan expansion, with Baltimore Harbor, Sparrows Point, and the approaches to the Patapsco River underscoring the industrial and strategic importance of the waterfront.

The natural features surrounding Baltimore are rendered with particular care, revealing the interplay between landscape and settlement. Jones Falls, Gwynns Falls, Back River, and the Patapsco River structure the map’s geography, carving routes through the terrain and defining corridors later followed by roads, rails, and urban growth. Lake Roland and Druid Hill Park mark important recreational and hydrological spaces within the city’s northern and western margins, while the contouring around Towson, Catonsville, and Ellicott City conveys the hilly character of the region. These elevation lines are more than technical marks; they explain why certain roads bend, why neighborhoods develop along ridges, and why stream valleys became natural passageways through the Maryland landscape.

As a historical document, this map preserves Baltimore at a fascinating threshold, before the transformations of the twentieth century altered its suburbs, industrial waterfront, and transportation networks. Fort McHenry anchors the harbor with its enduring national resonance, while outlying places such as Pellsville, Sparrows Point, and Back River point toward the expanding industrial and residential geography beyond the central city. The contrast between dense urban Baltimore and surrounding rural lands is one of the map’s most compelling qualities, offering a view of farms, villages, parkland, waterways, and infrastructure in dynamic proximity. It is a beautifully informative record of a city and region in motion, shaped by commerce, terrain, industry, and civic ambition.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Baltimore
• Ellicott City
• Towson
• Pikesville
• Woodlawn
• Catonsville
• Linthicum Heights
• Brooklyn
• Back River
• Patapsco River
• Jones Falls
• Gwynns Falls
• Lake Roland
• Fort McHenry
• Druid Hill Park
• Pellsville
• Sparrows Point
• Mount Washington
• Baltimore Harbor
• Baltimore & Ohio Railroad
• Various streets and roads within Baltimore’s urban grid

Historical context & cartographic details

• Historical 1:62,500 topographical map produced by the US Geological Survey.
• Created in 1894 and published with an 1896 imprint.
• Published by the US Geological Survey, noted for comprehensive mapping and geological data across the United States.
• Uses contour lines to show relief and elevation.
• Includes a clearly defined grid, reflecting a systematic approach to mapping.
• Shows both urban and rural landscapes around late 19th-century Baltimore.
• Depicts detailed elevation changes characteristic of the hilly terrain surrounding the city.
• Reflects Baltimore’s late 19th-century development, including urban growth and infrastructure changes.
• Provides insight into historical land use and geography that may differ significantly from the modern landscape.

Looking for a particular place? Review the detailed images to confirm that the town, landmark or feature you have in mind appears on the map. If you are unsure, ask our workshop to check before you order.

Detailed maps are especially rewarding at larger sizes, where names, boundaries and decorative features have more room to be appreciated. Use the close-up preview and size guide to choose the right scale for your wall.

This map looks amazing at sizes all the way up to 50in (125cm). If you are looking for a larger map, please get in touch.

The model in the listing images is holding the 16x20in (40x50cm) version of this map.

Where personalisation is available, you can add a short title or dedication, mark one meaningful place, or request one considered visual detail. See personalised map examples.

Every piece is printed to museum-grade archival standards using fade-resistant pigment inks on acid-free matte paper. Choose an unframed map print, framed map or canvas using the finish options above. Framed maps use crystal-clear optical acrylic and arrive ready to hang.

With its rich detail and strong sense of place, this map makes a considered gift for a new home, anniversary, retirement or anyone with a personal connection to the area shown. Still deciding? Explore our collection of rare old and vintage maps to discover another place, period or style.

This map is also available as a float framed canvas, sometimes known as a shadow gap framed canvas or canvas floater. The map is printed on artist's cotton canvas and then stretched over a handmade box frame. We then "float" the canvas inside a wooden frame, which is available in a range of colours (black, dark brown, oak, antique gold and white). This is a wonderful way to present a map without glazing in front. See some examples of float framed canvas maps and explore the differences between my different finishes.

For something truly unique, this map is also available in "Unique 3D", our trademarked process that dramatically transforms the map so that it has a wonderful sense of depth. We combine the original map with detailed topography and elevation data, so that mountains and the terrain really "pop". For more info and examples of 3D maps, check my Unique 3D page.