Map of Wisconsin is George F. Cram’s 1901 portrait of the Badger State, issued from his Chicago press for the census revision of his celebrated Atlas of the World, Ancient and Modern. True to Cram’s reputation, the sheet balances precision with verve: counties are distinctly color-banded in refined pastels, an ornate border frames the composition, and a crisp cartographic key decodes symbols and linework. Longitude is set from Greenwich, placing Wisconsin within a confidently global frame even as the map focuses on local exactitude. Produced at the turn of the century, it captures the state at a moment when railroads, county governance, and market towns structured civic life, and when Cram’s atlases—equally at home in classrooms, boardrooms, and survey offices—defined the visual language of American geography.

Administrative order is the map’s quiet drama. Color-coded counties read like a well-tuned mosaic, each boundary sharply resolved and each seat of government carefully marked. Urban hierarchies emerge through typographic gradation: Milwaukee dominates the southeastern lakeshore; Madison, the capital, anchors the south-central heartland; and Green Bay commands the storied bay and Fox River corridor. Kenosha and Racine stud the Lake Michigan littoral, while Appleton, Waukesha, and Oshkosh articulate the Fox–Winnebago country. Farther west, Eau Claire and La Crosse signal the riverine gateways to the Mississippi. Threading these nodes, rail lines and principal roads sketch the vectors of commerce and migration, revealing how settlement clustered along transportation corridors and fertile belts at the dawn of the 20th century.

Hydrography is rendered with particular sensitivity. Lake Superior crowns the north, while the long scalloped shore of Lake Michigan, with the projecting Door Peninsula and the recess of Green Bay, defines the east. The Mississippi River unfurls along the west, punctuated by its robust tributaries—the St. Croix, Chippewa, and Black—marking a watery palisade between uplands and bottomlands. Across the interior, the Wisconsin River cuts a diagonal course toward the Mississippi, its bends mirrored by the Fox River flowing the opposite way to Green Bay, a pairing that once formed a vital overland portage. Lake Winnebago sits broad and luminous at the system’s center. In tracing these channels, Cram inscribes the state’s natural architecture—its trade routes, mill towns, and recreational waters—onto a legible, elegant geographic skeleton.

Cram’s cartographic craft elevates information into design. Pastel tints avoid visual clutter while crisply asserting jurisdictional limits; railroads are engraved as assured strokes that never obscure the toponymy they connect. The population-weighted city symbols and graded type sizes translate demography into instant legibility, a hallmark of Cram’s pedagogical clarity. The Greenwich prime meridian and a disciplined latitude–longitude grid bespeak a modern, standardized geography, aligning Wisconsin with national surveys and international navigation. Meanwhile, the ornamental border and balanced margins evoke the pride of a publisher attuned to display as well as reference. The result is a map that invites continuous reading—scanning lines, weighing distances, comparing counties—without sacrificing the calm composure of fine print.

As a historical document, the 1901 Map of Wisconsin condenses a pivotal conjuncture: the railroad age at high tide, the motor road era only just beginning, immigration reshaping town names and markets, and county institutions consolidating authority. Northern forests and lake country contrast with the dairy-rich south and industrious east, a regional tapestry legible in the density of towns and the sweep of tracks. Cram’s atlas work, widely adopted by educators and professionals, democratized access to dependable geographic knowledge; this sheet distills that mission with Midwestern confidence. For historians, genealogists, and collectors, it offers a benchmark against which to trace shifting county lines, evolving rail corridors, and urban ascent—a quietly authoritative witness to Wisconsin’s transformation at the opening of the twentieth century.

Cities and towns on this map

• Milwaukee
• Madison
• Green Bay
• Kenosha
• Racine
• Appleton
• Waukesha
• Oshkosh
• Eau Claire
• La Crosse
• The map presents these settlements within their respective counties, contributing to a greater understanding of their geographic and demographic context during the early 1900s.

Notable Features & Landmarks

• Counties: Color-coded administrative counties of Wisconsin.
• Cities and towns: Clearly labeled towns and cities, each with distinctive sizing based on population.
• Railroads: Illustrations of major railroad lines indicating transportation routes.
• Major roads: Depictions of primary roads connecting various regions.
• Major water bodies: Lake Superior and other rivers and lakes marked prominently.
• Prime meridian indicator: Located at Greenwich, providing context for the map's longitude.

Historical and design context

• Mapmaker/publisher: George Franklin Cram; published in Chicago, IL.
• Creation year: 1901.
• Historical context: Part of Cram’s “Atlas of the World, Ancient and Modern,” revised for its census edition; Cram’s maps were widely used in educational and professional settings in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
• Topics and themes: Illustrates counties, cities and towns, railroads, roads, rivers, and other significant geographic features, offering insight into transportation infrastructure and settlement patterns of the time.
• Design style: Full color with distinct color-coded counties, a cartographic key, and an ornate border; pastel colors enhance visual appeal.
• Historical significance: Documents early 20th-century Wisconsin’s administrative divisions and transportation networks, aiding understanding of demographic and geographic change over time.

Please double check the images to make sure that a specific town or place is shown on this map. You can also get in touch and ask us to check the map for you.

This map looks great at every size, but I always recommend going for a larger size if you have space. That way you can easily make out all of the details.

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 18x24in (45x60cm) version of this map.

The fifth listing image shows an example of my map personalisation service.

If you’re looking for something slightly different, check out my collection of the best old maps to see if something else catches your eye.

Please contact me to check if a certain location, landmark or feature is shown on this map.

This would make a wonderful birthday, Christmas, Father's Day, work leaving, anniversary or housewarming gift for someone from the areas covered by this map.

This map is available as a giclée print on acid free archival matte paper, or you can buy it framed. The frame is a nice, simple black frame that suits most aesthetics. Please get in touch if you'd like a different frame colour or material. My frames are glazed with super-clear museum-grade acrylic (perspex/acrylite), which is significantly less reflective than glass, safer, and will always arrive in perfect condition.

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.

For most orders, delivery time is about 3 working days. Personalised and customised products take longer, as I have to do the personalisation and send it to you for approval, which usually takes 1 or 2 days.

Please note that very large framed orders usually take longer to make and deliver. 

If you need your order to arrive by a certain date, please contact me before you order so that we can find the best way of making sure you get your order in time.

I print and frame maps and artwork in 23 countries around the world. This means your order will be made locally, which cuts down on delivery time and ensures that it won't be damaged during delivery. You'll never pay customs or import duty, and we'll put less CO2 into the air.

All of my maps and art prints are well packaged and sent in a rugged tube if unframed, or surrounded by foam if framed.

I try to send out all orders within 1 or 2 days of receiving your order, though some products (like face masks, mugs and tote bags) can take longer to make.

If you select Express Delivery at checkout your order we will prioritise your order and send it out by 1-day courier (Fedex, DHL, UPS, Parcelforce).

Next Day delivery is also available in some countries (US, UK, Singapore, UAE) but please try to order early in the day so that we can get it sent out on time.

Read my full delivery and local production guide

My standard frame is a gallery style black ash hardwood frame. It is simple and quite modern looking. My standard frame is around 20mm (0.8in) wide.

I use super-clear acrylic (perspex/acrylite) for the frame glass. It's lighter and safer than glass - and it looks better, as the reflectivity is lower.

Six standard frame colours are available for free (black, dark brown, dark grey, oak, white and antique gold). Custom framing and mounting/matting is available if you're looking for something else.

Most maps, art and illustrations are also available as a framed canvas. We use matte (not shiny) cotton canvas, stretch it over a sustainably sourced box wood frame, and then 'float' the piece within a wood frame. The end result is quite beautiful, and there's no glazing to get in the way.

All frames are provided "ready to hang", with either a string or brackets on the back. Very large frames will have heavy duty hanging plates and/or a mounting baton. If you have any questions, please get in touch.

See some examples of my framed maps and framed canvas maps.

Alternatively, I can also supply old maps and artwork on canvas, foam board, cotton rag and other materials.

If you want to frame your map or artwork yourself, please read my size guide first.

My maps are extremely high quality reproductions of original maps.

I source original, rare maps from libraries, auction houses and private collections around the world, restore them at my London workshop, and then use specialist giclée inks and printers to create beautiful maps that look even better than the original.

My maps are printed on acid-free archival matte (not glossy) paper that feels very high quality and almost like card. In technical terms the paper weight/thickness is 10mil/200gsm. It's perfect for framing.

I print with Epson ultrachrome giclée UV fade resistant pigment inks - some of the best inks you can find.

I can also make maps on canvas, cotton rag and other exotic materials.

Learn more about The Unique Maps Co.

Map personalisation

If you're looking for the perfect anniversary or housewarming gift, I can personalise your map to make it truly unique. For example, I can add a short message, or highlight an important location, or add your family's coat of arms.

The options are almost infinite. Please see my map personalisation page for some wonderful examples of what's possible.

To order a personalised map, select "personalise your map" before adding it to your basket.

Get in touch if you're looking for more complex customisations and personalisations.

Map ageing

I have been asked hundreds of times over the years by customers if they could buy a map that looks even older.

Well, now you can, by selecting Aged before you add a map to your basket.

All the product photos you see on this page show the map in its Original form. This is what the map looks like today.

If you select Aged, I will age your map by hand, using a special and unique process developed through years of studying old maps, talking to researchers to understand the chemistry of aging paper, and of course... lots of practice!

If you're unsure, stick to the Original colour of the map. If you want something a bit darker and older looking, go for Aged.

See some amazing examples of Aged maps.

Se non sei soddisfatto del tuo ordine per qualsiasi motivo, contattami per un rimborso senza problemi. Si prega di consultare la nostra politica di reso e rimborso per ulteriori informazioni.

Sono molto sicuro che ti piacerà la tua mappa restaurata o la stampa d'arte. Lo faccio dal 1984. Sono un venditore Etsy a 5 stelle. Ho venduto decine di migliaia di mappe e stampe d'arte e ho oltre 5.000 recensioni reali a 5 stelle.

Utilizzo un processo unico per restaurare mappe e opere d'arte che richiede molto tempo e lavoro. Trovare le mappe e le illustrazioni originali può richiedere mesi. Utilizzo tecnologia all'avanguardia e incredibilmente costosa per scannerizzare e restaurarle. Di conseguenza, garantisco che le mie mappe e stampe d'arte siano superiori alle altre - ecco perché posso offrire un rimborso senza problemi.

Quasi tutte le mie mappe e stampe d'arte sembrano fantastiche a grandi dimensioni (200 cm, 6,5 piedi+) e posso anche incorniciarle e consegnarle a te, tramite un corriere speciale per oggetti di grandi dimensioni. Contattami per discutere delle tue esigenze specifiche.