Published in 1984 using survey data first collected in 1952, the USGS topographic map titled “Ocean City” captures a distinctive stretch of the southern New Jersey shore at a moment suspended between mid-century resort life and later coastal development. At 1:24,000 scale, it presents Ocean City not merely as a seaside destination, but as part of a finely observed coastal system of barrier islands, bays, marshes, inlets, roads, and settled neighborhoods. The Atlantic Ocean forms the map’s eastern edge, while the intricate waterways and low-lying wetlands behind the island reveal the geography that shaped the town’s growth. Its pale, disciplined palette and precise linework give the scene both scientific authority and quiet elegance.

The United States Geological Survey, founded in 1879, became synonymous with the rigorous mapping of the American landscape, and this sheet reflects the agency’s mid-twentieth-century mastery of practical cartography. USGS maps were created for engineers, planners, scientists, military users, hikers, and local officials, yet they often possess a beauty beyond their utilitarian purpose. Here, the agency’s characteristic visual language—contours, hydrographic detail, road classifications, place names, and land-use coloring—transforms the flat coastal terrain into an intelligible and richly layered document. In a region where elevation changes are subtle but consequential, the USGS approach is especially valuable, making marsh, mainland, island, and open water visually distinct without sacrificing clarity.

Ocean City itself appears as a carefully gridded resort community, its streets and avenues arranged along the narrow barrier island between the Atlantic Ocean and the sheltered waters to the west. Names such as North Street and Park Boulevard anchor the urban fabric, while the dense street pattern suggests a town already well established by the early 1950s. Across the surrounding waters lie Pleasantville, Egg Harbor, Lakes Bay, Great Egg Harbor, and a network of tidal channels and marshland. These features evoke the amphibious character of the New Jersey coast, where settlement, recreation, fishing, boating, and transportation all depend upon the shifting relationship between land and water.

Historically, this map documents Ocean City during a period of accelerating transformation. Founded as a Methodist resort in the late nineteenth century and long promoted as a family-friendly seaside community, Ocean City had by the 1950s become a mature vacation destination. Yet the map also preserves a landscape before many later waves of intensive development, infrastructure expansion, and shoreline management. The surrounding marshes and bays are especially significant, reminding the viewer that the glamour of the boardwalk and beachfront rested upon a fragile barrier-island environment. As a historical record, the sheet offers a measured portrait of a coastal town negotiating growth, tourism, mobility, and environmental constraint.

The design is unmistakably that of classic USGS topography: restrained, lucid, and deeply informative. Soft color coding differentiates water, developed areas, open land, marsh, and elevation, while the delicate treatment of coastal wetlands gives the map a subtle visual rhythm. Unlike mountainous quadrangles where contours dominate, this map’s drama lies in horizontality—broad flats, shallow bays, tidal margins, and the long linear edge of the oceanfront. Roads, waterways, and settlement patterns create the composition, revealing how human order has been imposed upon a low, mutable coast. The result is both a technical document and an evocative portrait of place, preserving Ocean City’s mid-century geography with exceptional precision.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Ocean City, NJ
• Pleasantville
• Egg Harbor
• Lakes Bay
• Great Egg Harbor
• North Street
• Park Boulevard
• Various streets within Ocean City
• Atlantic Ocean
• Several marshes and coastal water features

Historical context & cartographic details

• Produced by the United States Geological Survey (USGS), a scientific agency of the US government.
• Historical 1:24,000 topographical map of Ocean City, New Jersey and the surrounding area.
• Original data was collected in 1952; the map was published with a 1984 imprint.
• The 1984 imprint indicates updates or reprints based on earlier survey data.
• The USGS is well known for detailed topographical maps used in engineering, land-use planning, recreation, and related applications.
• The map uses color coding to represent different land uses and elevations, reflecting the style of mid-20th-century American topographic maps.
• The terrain shown is primarily coastal, with flatlands, water bodies, and marsh-like areas.
• The map offers a snapshot of Ocean City’s geography during a period of changing land use and resort-town development.
• The pale color palette helps distinguish urban areas, natural landscapes, and water bodies.

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.