Published in 1921 by the United States Geological Survey, “Lincoln Mountain” presents a richly detailed topographical portrait of central Vermont’s Green Mountains at a moment when scientific surveying was transforming the American landscape into measured, legible form. Centered on the rugged country around Lincoln Mountain, the map encompasses Sugarbush, Waitsfield, Warren, Ripton, Granville, Northfield, and the approaches toward Montpelier, capturing a region where mountain ridges, river valleys, farm settlements, and forested uplands meet. At a scale of 1:62,500, it balances broad regional context with finely observed terrain. The result is both practical and evocative: a cartographic record of Vermont’s high country in the early twentieth century, when roads, trails, and settlement patterns still closely followed the logic of slope, water, and valley floor.

The map’s most striking visual language lies in its dense contouring, rendered in a warm orange-brown palette that gives the mountains a sculptural presence. Lincoln Mountain and the surrounding Green Mountain ridges rise and fall through tightly drawn elevation lines, revealing the steep gradients, saddles, hollows, and ravines that define this part of Vermont. The contours do more than indicate height; they communicate the lived difficulty of the terrain, showing why communities clustered in valleys and why passage across the mountains required careful routing. Valleys open like corridors between ridgelines, while forested heights dominate the composition. This style is characteristic of USGS topographic excellence: precise, restrained, and deeply informative, yet visually handsome in the way it turns geography into pattern.

The Mad River valley is one of the map’s essential organizing features, anchoring the settlements of Waitsfield and Warren within a landscape shaped by water and elevation. The river’s course threads through the mountainous terrain, linking farms, roads, and villages in a north-south corridor that remains one of Vermont’s defining regional landscapes. Sugarbush, now widely associated with skiing and mountain recreation, appears here within its older geographical setting: a high, forested mountain environment before the full emergence of modern resort culture. The map therefore offers a valuable glimpse of place before later layers of development, emphasizing terrain, rural settlement, and natural routes through the Green Mountains rather than the recreational identity for which parts of the area would later become famous.

As a work of the United States Geological Survey, the map belongs to a larger national project of measurement, classification, and public knowledge. Founded in the late nineteenth century, the USGS became central to mapping the United States with unprecedented scientific consistency, producing topographical sheets that served engineers, planners, conservationists, travelers, educators, and local communities. In Vermont, such mapping was especially important because the landscape’s complexity—mountain chains, narrow valleys, dispersed settlements, and heavily forested land—demanded careful observation. The 1921 “Lincoln Mountain” sheet reflects this disciplined approach. Roads, towns, ridges, streams, and trails are not merely named or sketched; they are set into a measurable terrain, allowing the viewer to understand how human life adapted to the contours of the land.

Historically, the map records a region poised between traditional rural Vermont and the infrastructural changes of the twentieth century. Its towns and villages—Waitsfield, Warren, Ripton, Granville, Northfield, and others—appear as settled points within a far larger mountain environment, suggesting patterns of agriculture, forestry, travel, and local exchange. Trails and roads indicate the practical connections between communities, while unnamed ridges and valleys hint at a landscape still defined by woodland, elevation, and seasonal difficulty. For collectors, the appeal of this map lies not only in its technical precision but in its atmosphere: it preserves the Green Mountains before contemporary development altered their cultural meaning. “Lincoln Mountain” is a refined and revealing document of Vermont’s terrain, settlement, and early modern cartographic history.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Sugarbush
• Waitsfield
• Warren
• Lincoln Mountain
• Ripton
• Granville
• Northfield
• Montpelier
• Mad River
• Green Mountains
• Several unnamed valleys and ridges
• Numerous forested areas and trails

Historical context & cartographic details

• Produced by the United States Geological Survey as a historical 1:62,500 topographical map.
• Dated 1921.
• Shows central Vermont and the surrounding mountainous region.
• Features contour lines indicating elevation changes.
• Uses a distinct orange-brown color palette to communicate topography.
• Illustrates rugged mountainous terrain with notable elevation variations, including valleys and peaks.
• Reflects early 20th-century geographical and infrastructural developments in Vermont.
• Offers insight into historical land usage and settlement patterns.
• The USGS is known for detailed mapping and surveying of the American landscape, contributing to scientific research and public knowledge.

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.