Published in 1960 from 1958 mapping, the USGS quadrangle titled “Bolton Landing” presents a richly detailed portrait of the Lake George country at a moment when the Adirondack landscape was balancing resort life, forested wilderness, and expanding postwar infrastructure. Centered on Bolton Landing, the map reaches across a dramatic terrain of water, mountain, and woodland, capturing the eastern Adirondacks in the precise language of mid-century American topographic cartography. At a scale of 1:62,500, it records not only towns and roads, but also the contours of ridges, shorelines, bays, islands, and upland drainage. The result is a map of unusual practical elegance: a geographic document that reveals how settlement gathered around Lake George while the surrounding hills and forests retained their commanding natural presence.

The United States Geological Survey brought to this map the institutional authority that made its quadrangles indispensable to engineers, hikers, planners, geologists, and landowners. Founded in 1879, the USGS became the nation’s premier scientific mapping agency, renowned for transforming local landscapes into standardized, highly legible topographic sheets. In “Bolton Landing,” that disciplined approach is visible in every contour, road classification, stream course, and place name. The map’s green tonal scheme gives immediate visual emphasis to wooded and upland areas, while blue water bodies—Lake George, Brant Lake, Diamond Lake, Northwest Bay, and many smaller ponds—stand out with crystalline clarity. This careful color logic allows the viewer to read the landscape almost intuitively, moving from inhabited shorelines to rising forests and mountain slopes.

Lake George dominates the map both visually and historically, its long, narrow form cutting through the Adirondack terrain like a glacial corridor. Around Bolton Landing, the lake’s western shore is articulated by bays, points, islands, and landing places that speak to generations of travel, recreation, and settlement. Northwest Bay appears as one of the major sheltered arms of the lake, while Long Island and the waters of The Narrows evoke the intricate island-studded passageways that made Lake George famous among boaters and vacationers. To the south, Fort William Henry connects the region to the military history of colonial North America, recalling the strategic importance of this lake route during the French and Indian War and the broader contest for control of the interior.

The map’s topography is especially compelling around Tongue Mountain, where contour lines gather tightly to describe the steep ridges and rugged slopes that rise above Lake George. These forms are not decorative; they are the essential structure of the Adirondack landscape, showing how elevation shaped roads, trails, settlements, and access to the water. Rolling hills, dense forests, and upland basins surround Bolton Landing, Hague, and the lakes to the west, creating a terrain that feels at once inhabited and wild. The contrast between blue lake surfaces and green forested relief captures the enduring character of the region: a place defined by recreation and retreat, yet still governed by the granite, water, and woodland patterns of the Adirondacks.

As a historical record, “Bolton Landing” offers a revealing view of the region in the late 1950s, before later decades of residential growth, shoreline development, and changing transportation patterns further altered the local landscape. Roads and trails trace the practical geography of the period, linking lake communities, forest interiors, and smaller settlements across Warren County and neighboring areas. The map quietly preserves the arrangement of populated places, wooded tracts, rail alignments where present, and rural routes at a particular postwar moment. For collectors and admirers of Adirondack history, it is more than a technical survey: it is a finely observed landscape portrait of Lake George country, where natural grandeur, historic memory, and mid-century American cartography meet.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Bolton Landing
• Lake George
• Hague
• Diamond Lake
• Brant Lake
• Northwest Bay
• Long Island
• Tongue Mountain
• The Narrows
• Fort William Henry
• Various lakes and smaller water bodies
• Surrounding forests and wooded areas
• Roads and trails depicted throughout the map
• Railways noted where applicable

Historical context & cartographic details

• Produced by the United States Geological Survey, known for its detailed topographical mapping and contributions to hydrology, geology, and cartography in the U.S.
• Historical 1:62,500 topographical map of Bolton Landing, New York and the surrounding area.
• Dated 1958 with a 1960 imprint.
• Uses a green color palette to represent vegetation and elevation changes.
• Depicts topographical detail through contour lines.
• Water bodies are illustrated in blue for clear differentiation from land areas.
• Shows rolling hills, lakes, and dense forests characteristic of the Bolton Landing area.
• Reflects the geographical and infrastructural landscape of Bolton Landing in the late 1950s.
• Provides evidence of road infrastructure, residential development, and natural landscape patterns as they appeared at the time of publication.

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.