{"product_id":"old-map-of-la-crosse-wisconsin-by-usgs-1963-onalaska-west-salem-mississippi-river","title":"Old Map of La Crosse, Wisconsin by USGS, 1963 – Onalaska, West Salem \u0026 Mississippi River","description":"\u003cp\u003ePublished in 1965 from 1963 US Geological Survey work, the topographical map titled “La Crosse” presents one of the Upper Mississippi’s most dramatic river landscapes at a scale of 1:62,500. Centered on La Crosse, Wisconsin, it captures the city at a moment when mid-century infrastructure, medical institutions, rail lines, and expanding neighborhoods were reshaping its relationship with the surrounding bluffs and river bottoms. The map’s disciplined USGS design uses color, contour, and precise labeling to distinguish urban development, wooded slopes, agricultural land, water bodies, and transportation corridors. As both a technical document and a historical portrait, it records the geography of La Crosse before later suburban growth fully transformed the edges of Onalaska, Holmen, and West Salem.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe defining drama of the map is the meeting of water and elevation. The Mississippi River forms the great western axis of the sheet, its channels, islands, marshes, and backwaters spread across the broad floodplain. Nearby, the Black River enters this intricate aquatic landscape, while Lake Onalaska widens the scene into a luminous expanse of water and wetland. Against these lowlands, contour lines rise sharply into the coulee country of western Wisconsin, making the bluffs, valleys, and ridgelines legible with remarkable clarity. Elevation markers and shaded relief emphasize the abrupt transition from river bottom to upland, revealing why the La Crosse region has long been prized for its scenic overlooks, strategic crossings, and distinctive terrain.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLa Crosse itself appears as a compact but growing regional center, set between the Mississippi and the steep eastern bluffs. The map records the city’s street grid, neighborhoods, rail approaches, riverfront industry, and important civic landmarks, including Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center, reflecting its role as a medical and commercial hub. Onalaska and Holmen to the north, and West Salem to the east, are shown as smaller communities connected by roads, railways, and the natural corridors shaped by river valleys. These details give the map an appealing documentary quality: it shows not only where people lived and traveled in the early 1960s, but also how settlement adapted to the constraints of water, slope, and fertile low ground.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe US Geological Survey’s cartographic language is especially effective here. Fine contour intervals trace every ridge nose and ravine, while color separates forested uplands from open farmland and developed areas. Roads, railways, streams, lakes, and public lands are layered with the clarity that made USGS topographic maps indispensable to engineers, planners, hikers, and geographers. In the La Crosse sheet, this precision becomes almost pictorial: the Mississippi’s sinuous complexity contrasts with the rectilinear order of streets and fields, while the wooded coulees break the landscape into a rhythm of shadowed valleys and high, narrow divides. The result is a map that is practical, elegant, and unusually expressive of place.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHistorically, the map preserves La Crosse and its surroundings during a pivotal postwar decade. The region’s older river and rail economy remained visible, yet expanding highways, medical facilities, suburban neighborhoods, and recreational landscapes hinted at the future. Corridors now associated with regional trails, including the Great River State Trail, can be understood through the transportation geography shown here, especially the rail and river routes that structured movement through the valley. Parks, wooded tracts, and forested blufflands underscore the area’s enduring environmental richness, while the agricultural hinterland surrounding West Salem and Holmen speaks to its rural foundations. As a mid-century topographical record, “La Crosse” offers a finely detailed view of a landscape where commerce, settlement, and natural grandeur meet.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eCities, towns and places on this map\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eLa Crosse, Wisconsin\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWest Salem\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eOnalaska\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHolmen\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eGunderson Lutheran Medical Center\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMississippi River\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBlack River\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eLake Onalaska\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eLake Wisconsin\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eGreat River State Trail\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSeveral parks and forested areas in the vicinity\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMajor roads and railways connecting to surrounding areas\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCity neighborhoods\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\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCreated in 1963 and published in 1965\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTopographical map at a scale of 1:62,500\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFeatures La Crosse, Wisconsin, and surrounding areas with survey data and topographical detail\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eUses color to distinguish wooded areas, agricultural land, urban development, and other land features\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eIncludes contour lines, elevation markers, and shaded relief to show changes in terrain\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eRepresents hills, valleys, rivers, lakes, and other water bodies in detail\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eReflects the geographical and infrastructural state of La Crosse and its surroundings during the 1960s\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHighlights mid-20th-century urban and rural development patterns in the region\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=\"\/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=\"\/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=\"\/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=\"\/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":68115528057223,"sku":null,"price":42.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true},{"title":"12x16in (30x40cm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":68115528089991,"sku":null,"price":115.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true},{"title":"12x16in (30x40cm) \/ Framed canvas map","offer_id":68115528122759,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true},{"title":"A3 (297x420mm) \/ Map","offer_id":68115528155527,"sku":null,"price":42.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true},{"title":"A3 (297x420mm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":68115528188295,"sku":null,"price":115.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true},{"title":"A3 (297x420mm) \/ Framed canvas 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