{"product_id":"old-map-of-fort-collins-colorado-by-usgs-1960-colorado-state-university-cache-la-poudre-river","title":"Old Map of Fort Collins, Colorado by USGS, 1960 – Colorado State University \u0026 Cache la Poudre River","description":"\u003cp\u003ePublished in 1984 from survey work originally created in 1960, the US Geological Survey’s “Fort Collins” presents a richly detailed portrait of northern Colorado at a pivotal moment in its modern growth. Drawn at the precise 1:24,000 topographic scale, the map centers on Fort Collins and its surrounding plains, waterways, roads, and emerging suburban fabric. Pink and red urban tints distinguish built-up districts from open land, while finely drawn contour lines reveal the subtle rise and fall of the Front Range foothills and adjacent agricultural country. More than a technical document, it is a visual record of a university city expanding outward, balancing its historic core, transportation corridors, and rural edges.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe US Geological Survey brought to this map the disciplined clarity that made its quadrangles indispensable to engineers, planners, hikers, scientists, and local officials. Founded in the nineteenth century to systematically study and map the American landscape, the USGS developed a cartographic language of exceptional legibility: contour intervals, hydrographic lines, road classifications, railways, public landmarks, and land-use colors all working together. In “Fort Collins,” that language captures both human settlement and natural form. Highways, local streets, rail lines, schools, parks, and waterways are integrated into a coherent geographical composition, allowing the viewer to read the city not as an isolated place, but as part of a larger regional system shaped by movement, water, elevation, and development.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFort Collins itself appears as the defining presence on the map, already recognizable as a center of education, commerce, and civic life. Colorado State University, one of the city’s most important institutions, anchors the urban landscape and hints at the cultural and economic forces that have long shaped the community. Around it, neighborhoods, municipal parks, and commercial corridors mark the growth of a city whose identity blended agricultural roots with research, industry, and higher education. The mapped street grid and expanding residential areas offer a fascinating comparison with the contemporary city, showing where Fort Collins had consolidated by 1960 and where later decades would push development farther across the plains.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWater gives the map much of its regional character. The Cache la Poudre River, one of northern Colorado’s defining waterways, threads through the landscape and has historically supported agriculture, settlement, recreation, and industry. Nearby Horsetooth Reservoir stands out as a major landmark, reflecting the importance of water storage and irrigation along the Front Range. Windsor Lake, Twin Lakes, and other smaller water features add further texture to the mapped terrain, linking Fort Collins to neighboring communities and rural districts. These hydrological details are especially compelling on a topographic map, where rivers, reservoirs, ditches, and contours together reveal how settlement followed both opportunity and constraint in a semi-arid environment.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTransportation corridors give the map a strong sense of mid-twentieth-century connectivity. US Highway 287 and Colorado Highway 14 structure movement through and beyond Fort Collins, tying the city to Loveland, the mountain canyons, nearby agricultural lands, and the broader Colorado road network. Historical railway lines, still marked with the authority of USGS symbology, recall an earlier era when rail shaped trade, industry, and urban growth across the region. Seen today, the map is both practical geography and historical evidence: a snapshot of Fort Collins before later waves of population growth, suburban expansion, and metropolitan integration transformed the northern Front Range into one of Colorado’s most dynamic corridors.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eCities, towns and places on this map\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFort Collins\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCache la Poudre River\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHorsetooth Reservoir\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWindsor Lake\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTwin Lakes\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eLoveland\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eColorado State University\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eVarious neighborhoods within Fort Collins\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eUS Highway 287\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eColorado Highway 14\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSeveral municipal parks around Fort Collins\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHistorical railway lines previously serving the area\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eKey landmarks indicated by symbols and labels on the map\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eHistorical context \u0026amp; cartographic details\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eProduced by the US Geological Survey as a historical 1:24,000 topographical map of Fort Collins, Colorado and the surrounding area.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCreated in 1960 and published with a 1984 imprint.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe US Geological Survey is a respected mapmaker known for geological research and detailed mapping used to understand land use, geography, and terrain.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe map uses varied colors to distinguish land uses, including pink and red hues for urban areas.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDetailed contour lines depict elevation and topography, useful for understanding the landscape, outdoor recreation, and land-use planning.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe map provides a snapshot of the Fort Collins area in 1960, allowing comparison with later urban development, land-use change, and population growth.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLooking for a particular place?\u003c\/strong\u003e Review the detailed images to confirm that the town, landmark or feature you have in mind appears on the map. If you are unsure, \u003ca target=\"”_blank”\" href=\"\/es\/pages\/contact-us\"\u003eask our workshop to check before you order\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDetailed 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis map looks amazing at sizes all the way up to 50in (125cm). If you are looking for a larger map, please \u003ca href=\"\/es\/pages\/contact-us\"\u003eget in touch\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe model in the listing images is holding the 16x20in (40x50cm) version of this map.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhere personalisation is available, you can add a short title or dedication, mark one meaningful place, or request one considered visual detail. \u003ca target=\"”_blank”\" href=\"\/es\/pages\/map-personalisation\"\u003eSee personalised map examples\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEvery 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWith 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 \u003ca target=\"”_blank”\" href=\"\/es\/collections\/all-old-vintage-antique-maps\"\u003erare old and vintage maps\u003c\/a\u003e to discover another place, period or style.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"The Unique Maps Co.","offers":[{"title":"12x16in (30x40cm) \/ Map","offer_id":58763135451520,"sku":null,"price":76.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"12x16in (30x40cm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":58763135484288,"sku":null,"price":203.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"12x16in (30x40cm) \/ Framed canvas map","offer_id":58763135517056,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"A3 (297x420mm) \/ Map","offer_id":58763135549824,"sku":null,"price":76.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"A3 (297x420mm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":58763135582592,"sku":null,"price":203.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"A3 (297x420mm) \/ Framed canvas 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