Published in 1984 using survey data collected in 1967, “Las Vegas NW” presents a fascinating United States Geological Survey portrait of a city in the midst of transformation. At the detailed 1:24,000 scale, the map captures northwestern Las Vegas as its residential grid, roads, commercial corridors, and civic infrastructure pressed outward into the desert margins. The result is both a precise topographic document and a compelling historical snapshot: Las Vegas before many later waves of expansion reshaped the valley. Its distinctive pink and red land-use tinting emphasizes developed areas, allowing the viewer to read the spread of neighborhoods, institutional sites, transportation lines, and open land with unusual clarity.

The United States Geological Survey brought to this map the disciplined visual language that made its quadrangles indispensable to engineers, planners, geologists, hikers, and government agencies. Founded in the nineteenth century to systematically study the nation’s terrain and resources, the USGS became the authoritative source for mapping America’s physical landscape. Here, that institutional rigor is evident in the clean hierarchy of roads, railways, trails, boundaries, drainage, and built environments. Rather than dramatizing Las Vegas as a spectacle of neon and entertainment, the map reveals the city as terrain: a network of streets, services, and land uses set within a demanding desert basin.

One of the map’s most evocative qualities is the contrast between urban geometry and natural form. The gridded neighborhoods and road alignments of Las Vegas occupy the valley floor, while contour lines trace the subtle rises, hills, and surrounding mountainous terrain that define the region’s geography. These elevation contours quietly tell the story of a settlement constrained and shaped by aridity, slope, drainage, and distance. Parks, recreational areas, open spaces, and undeveloped land appear alongside expanding residential and commercial zones, illustrating the delicate interface between city-building and the Mojave Desert environment that has always framed Las Vegas’s growth.

As a late twentieth-century urban document, “Las Vegas NW” is especially valuable for what it reveals about metropolitan expansion. The map shows a Las Vegas already moving beyond its earlier core, with residential districts, schools, military installations, infrastructure, and improved roads marking the outward push of population and development. Commercial land and transportation corridors hint at the economic forces drawing people and investment into the valley. Railways and trails add further layers of movement, reminding us that even in an automobile-oriented landscape, older and alternative routes remained part of the region’s spatial fabric.

Visually, the map is both utilitarian and striking. Its color scheme—particularly the shades of pink and red used to distinguish developed and categorized land—gives the sheet an immediacy that rewards close study. The design allows patterns of habitation, commerce, public use, and open terrain to emerge almost at a glance, while the contouring preserves the subtle topographic intelligence for which USGS maps are renowned. “Las Vegas NW” is therefore more than a record of streets and elevations; it is a cartographic study of a desert city becoming metropolitan, capturing the moment when Las Vegas’s built landscape was beginning to accelerate toward its modern form.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Las Vegas
• Neighborhoods within Las Vegas
• Various residential areas
• Major roads and highways
• Parks and recreational areas
• Natural land features, including hills and valleys
• Military installations
• Educational institutions
• Land marked for commercial use
• Infrastructure such as railways and trails

Historical context & cartographic details

• Produced by the United States Geological Survey (USGS).
• Survey data collected in 1967, with a publication date of 1984.
• Historical topographic map at a scale of 1:24,000.
• Shows the Las Vegas area and surrounding locations, reflecting urban and geographical features of the time.
• The USGS is a scientific agency of the U.S. government that provides data and maps on natural resources, hazards, and the landscape.
• Uses color coding to differentiate land uses, including residential, commercial, and natural areas.
• Uses contour lines to illustrate elevation changes.
• Includes elevation contours showing the mountainous terrain surrounding Las Vegas, including valleys and hills.
• Serves as a snapshot of Las Vegas’s late-20th-century expansion through residential development, road improvements, and commercial growth.
• Features a distinctive color scheme, using shades of pink and red to represent various land uses and land development patterns.

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.