{"product_id":"map-of-carbondale-illinois-by-usgs-1996-shawnee-national-forest-crab-orchard-national-wildlife-refuge","title":"Map of Carbondale, Illinois by USGS, 1996 – Shawnee National Forest \u0026 Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge","description":"\u003cp\u003eTitled “Carbondale,” this United States Geological Survey map presents one of southern Illinois’s most distinctive landscapes at the intimate 1:24,000 scale. Created in 1996 and published with a 1998 imprint, it captures Carbondale and its surrounding countryside at a moment when the city balanced its role as a regional hub with the wooded, hilly terrain that defines the northern edge of the Illinois Ozarks. The map’s precise topographic language—contour lines, road classifications, water features, and shaded land-use colors—offers far more than orientation. It records the relationship between town and terrain: urban streets and rail corridors set against ridges, drainage lines, forest tracts, and the broader ecological richness of Jackson and Williamson counties.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe USGS, founded in 1879, brought to maps such as this an exacting scientific tradition rooted in field survey, geology, hydrology, and national land classification. Its topographic quadrangles became indispensable tools for engineers, planners, hikers, conservationists, and historians, translating the American landscape into a standardized visual language. In “Carbondale,” that language is especially rewarding: brown contour lines articulate the undulating relief, blue marks the courses of streams and lake waters, green identifies wooded and protected lands, and black and red trace the built environment. The result is a map of elegant utility, where scientific clarity becomes a kind of restrained cartographic beauty.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCarbondale itself appears as the central urban presence, its streets, rail lines, and developed districts forming a geometric counterpoint to the irregular natural forms around it. Known as the home of Southern Illinois University, the city has long served as a cultural, educational, and transportation center for the region. The map situates it within a wider network of roads and railway lines, emphasizing the town’s historical importance as a point of movement and exchange. Yet the surrounding contours make clear that this is not the flat prairie landscape often associated with Illinois. Here, the ground rises and falls, producing a more rugged southern character that shaped settlement, travel, and recreation alike.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTo the south and east, the map evokes the influence of the Shawnee National Forest and the broader natural corridor that makes this part of Illinois so geographically unusual. The forested uplands, dissected by streams and ravines, belong to a landscape closer in spirit to the Ozarks and Appalachians than to the open agricultural plains farther north. Nearby Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge and Crab Orchard Lake add another dimension, introducing wetlands, open water, and managed habitat into the regional picture. These features speak to the area’s ecological complexity: a meeting place of forest, water, wildlife refuge, recreation, and human settlement, all rendered through the disciplined precision of USGS cartography.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs a historical document, this 1996 survey preserves a late-twentieth-century view of Carbondale and its environs before subsequent decades of development, conservation planning, infrastructure change, and environmental transformation. The map records roads, waterways, recreational lands, and urban edges as they stood at the time, allowing modern viewers to compare past and present with unusual clarity. Its contours also reveal what development cannot erase: the underlying form of the land, the slopes and drainages that continue to govern movement, ecology, and habitation. For collectors of American topography, “Carbondale” offers a finely detailed portrait of a university city embedded in one of Illinois’s most scenic and geologically expressive regions.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eCities, towns and places on this map\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCarbondale, Illinois\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eShawnee National Forest\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCrab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCrab Orchard Lake\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eVarious rivers and streams\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eUrban area highlighted in Carbondale\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMultiple roads and railway lines\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNearby parks and recreational areas\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eHistorical context \u0026amp; cartographic details\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eProduced by the United States Geological Survey as a historical 1:24,000 topographical map.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCreated in 1996 and published with a 1998 imprint.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe USGS, established in 1879, is known for detailed geological mapping and topographic surveys.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eUses a clear topographical style with contour lines to show elevation changes.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eColor is used to distinguish land features such as water bodies and forested areas.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eShows the hilly terrain typical of southern Illinois, with significant elevation changes.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eReflects the geological and ecological characteristics of the area as recorded in 1996.\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=\"\/it\/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=\"\/it\/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=\"\/it\/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=\"\/it\/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":59985049354624,"sku":null,"price":41.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true},{"title":"12x16in (30x40cm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":59985049387392,"sku":null,"price":112.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true},{"title":"12x16in (30x40cm) \/ Framed canvas map","offer_id":59985049420160,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true},{"title":"A3 (297x420mm) \/ Map","offer_id":59985049452928,"sku":null,"price":41.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true},{"title":"A3 (297x420mm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":59985049485696,"sku":null,"price":112.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true},{"title":"A3 (297x420mm) \/ Framed canvas 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