Dated 1934, the US Geological Survey’s “Sawtelle” presents a finely observed 1:24,000 topographical portrait of western Los Angeles County at a pivotal moment in its transformation. Centered on Sawtelle and extending across Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, Westwood, Brentwood, Bel Air, and the eastern Santa Monica Mountains, the map captures a landscape balanced between coastal resort, suburban expansion, oil-age infrastructure, and emerging metropolitan glamour. Its original title is deceptively modest: “Sawtelle” names what was then a distinct community, yet the sheet encompasses places that would become synonymous with twentieth-century Southern California. With contour lines, street grids, rail corridors, boulevards, parks, and landmark structures carefully rendered, the map offers both geographic precision and a revealing snapshot of Los Angeles before postwar growth remade the region.

Produced by the US Geological Survey, this map belongs to a distinguished cartographic tradition dedicated to accuracy, clarity, and practical public knowledge. USGS topographical maps were designed for engineers, planners, surveyors, land managers, and travelers, but their disciplined visual language now gives them a quiet elegance. Here, contouring is central: the flat, gridded urban floor of Santa Monica and Beverly Hills gives way to the broken relief of Brentwood, Bel Air, and the Santa Monica Mountains. The map’s restrained symbology allows the viewer to read elevation, drainage, roads, railways, and settlement patterns without ornament, producing a remarkably legible account of place. Its beauty lies in function—the crisp geometry of streets set against the organic rise of canyons and foothills.

The urban geography is especially compelling. Beverly Hills appears as an ordered composition of streets and estates, already suggesting the planned refinement that would define its reputation. Santa Monica, aligned with the Pacific Ocean, reflects its dual identity as seaside city and transportation-linked suburb. Sawtelle and Westwood reveal another chapter: the growth of western Los Angeles around rail access, boulevards, institutions, and new residential districts. Wilshire Boulevard and Santa Monica Boulevard traverse the map as major organizing lines, while Route 66 evokes the national mythology of westward movement and automobile travel. The Southern Pacific Railway further anchors the sheet in an older infrastructure of freight, commuting, and development, showing how rail and road together shaped the modern city.

Beyond the built grid, the map records a terrain still visibly resistant to complete urbanization. The eastern Santa Monica Mountains rise above the coastal plain in carefully spaced contour lines, defining ridges, slopes, canyons, and the upland edge of Bel Air and Brentwood. These topographical details illuminate why certain neighborhoods developed along winding roads and elevated parcels, while others spread in rectilinear patterns across gentler ground. Parks and large structures, marked and named, punctuate the urban fabric, suggesting civic ambition and the growing importance of recreational space in Southern California planning. The Pacific Ocean forms the western boundary with elemental simplicity, reminding the viewer that climate, coastline, and scenery were central forces in the area’s appeal.

As a historical document, “Sawtelle” is particularly resonant because it predates many layers of later Los Angeles expansion. In 1934, Beverly Hills was already famous, Santa Monica was established, and Westwood was ascending, yet the density, freeways, and intensified land use of the postwar metropolis had not fully arrived. The map makes it possible to compare an earlier urban order with the contemporary city: routes that became iconic, neighborhoods that grew more exclusive, open slopes that filled with homes, and corridors that absorbed immense traffic and commerce. It captures Southern California at the intersection of aspiration and geography, when citrus-era suburbs, Hollywood wealth, coastal leisure, and modern planning were converging into one of America’s most recognizable urban landscapes.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Beverly Hills
• Santa Monica
• Sawtelle
• Westwood
• Brentwood
• Bel Air
• Eastern Santa Monica Mountains
• Wilshire Boulevard
• Santa Monica Boulevard
• Route 66
• Southern Pacific Railway
• Los Angeles County
• Los Angeles
• Pacific Ocean
• Various large structures and parks, depicted with dots and named

Historical context & cartographic details

• Produced by the US Geological Survey, known for accurate and detailed topographical mapping.
• Dated 1934.
• Historical 1:24,000 topographical map showing Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, and the surrounding area.
• Uses a basic, functional USGS design emphasizing topographical contouring and land use patterns.
• Displays detailed contour lines indicating elevation changes and local terrain.
• Shows the street grid and urban planning of Beverly Hills and nearby communities.
• Includes identifiable streets, landmarks, railways, parks, and large structures.
• Serves as a historical reference for comparing the area before later urban development in Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, and western Los Angeles.

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.