“Map of the Yellowstone National Park Compiled from different official explorations and our personal survey, 1882,” compiled by Hals & Rydström in 1885, stands among the earliest separately published tourist maps of the world’s first national park. Drawing on the U.S. Geological Survey of 1878, Army Corps of Engineers work, and the compilers’ own 1882 field observations, it captures the instant when Yellowstone pivoted from epic reconnaissance to curated visitation. Hachured and shaded relief conveys the volcanic high country with dramatic clarity, while an inset at lower left traces the North Pacific Railroad’s approach toward the park. The result doubles as invitation and record: an authoritative guide for the first generation of travelers inspired by Yellowstone’s 1872 designation.

At the heart of the composition is movement—stage and wagon roads sweep across valleys and benches, translating grand geology into an intelligible itinerary. From the railroad’s terminus at Cinnabar, routes follow the Gardiner River toward Mammoth Hot Springs and the precinct of Fort Yellowstone, then radiate to Norris, the Gibbon and Firehole country, and the lake plateau. Trails peel away toward more secluded marvels, with waypoints carefully noted to guide outfitters and tourists alike. Hotels, camps, and named cabins punctuate the network, evidence of a nascent hospitality infrastructure engineered to meet demand from rail-borne visitors whose journey began on steel and continued by coach into the caldera.

The map celebrates Yellowstone’s signature spectacles with precision and poise. Old Faithful and the Upper, Middle, and Lower Geyser Basins stride along the Firehole River, joined by Shoshone, Gibbon, and Heart Lake geyser basins farther afield. The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone—its chasm implied by close hachures—anchors the park’s dramatic northeast, while Yellowstone Lake spreads like an inland sea, laced with named approaches and trails. Around these attractions, the compilers identify practical features—cabins, staging points, and connecting tracks—underscoring how early tourists navigated between wonder and waystation. It is a portrait of access thoughtfully arranged around forces of heat, water, and time, balancing spectacle with the realities of nineteenth-century travel.

Hals and Rydström’s draftsmanship heightens the narrative of ascent and outlook. Peaks such as Mount Washburn, Mount Stevenson, Mount Norris, Electric Peak, Mount Doane, Flat Mountain, and the Twin Buttes rise in sculptural relief, mirroring the vantage points favored by surveyors and sightseers. The choice of hachures over contour lines situates the work at a pivotal cartographic moment, privileging visual drama and route-finding over exact hypsometry. Valleys—Pelican and Gibbon—read as natural corridors, their gradients rendered to explain why roads bend and bridges cross where they do. This is terrain expressed as experience, a guide that teaches topography by showing how travelers felt it under wheel and boot.

Context extends beyond the park’s firm boundaries, which are clearly demarcated against the adjoining reaches of Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana. The inset’s North Pacific Railroad sections to Cinnabar underscore Yellowstone’s integration into national itineraries, while labels like Glen Creek, the Gardiner River, and Brinkerhoff’s Cabin preserve the texture of wayfinding on the ground. Historically, the map documents a decisive American shift—from military and scientific reconnaissance to managed enjoyment and protection—embodied in the routes to Mammoth Hot Springs and the locus of Fort Yellowstone. Scarce and separately issued, it stands as a rare witness to the dawn of conservation-era travel, when the industrial age first placed the sublime within a few days’ reach.

Places on this map

• Yellowstone National Park
• Old Faithful Geyser
• Mammoth Hot Springs
• Yellowstone Lake
• Cinnabar
• Shoshone Geyser Basin
• Gibbon Geyser Basin
• Heart Lake Geyser Basin
• The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
• Electric Peak
• Mount Washburn
• Mount Norris
• Pelican Valley
• Flat Mountain
• Twin Buttes
• Mount Doane
• Fort Yellowstone
• Glen Creek
• Gardiner River
• Brinkerhoff's Cabin

Notable Features & Landmarks

• Hachured and shaded topography detailing elevations.
• Marked stage roads and wagon roads.
• Notable sites of interest, such as geysers and hot springs.
• Tourist accommodations including hotels and cabins.
• Inset detailing North Pacific Railroad routes.
• Various labeled mountains, including Mount Washburn and Mount Stevenson.
• Notable water bodies such as Yellowstone Lake.
• Locations of significant geological features, like geyser basins.
• Trails leading to popular attractions.
• Clear geographical demarcation of park boundaries.

Historical and design context

• Scarce, separately published among the earliest tourist maps of Yellowstone National Park.
• Influenced by earlier surveys, including the U.S. Geological Survey of 1878 and Army Corps of Engineers surveys.
• Represents the early tourist infrastructure and accessibility of Yellowstone just after its designation as a national park in 1872.
• Shows the initial development of roads and accommodations catering to visitors.
• Utilizes hachures and shading for topography rather than contour lines.
• An inset in the lower-left corner displays the North Pacific Railroad sections reaching Cinnabar.
• Routes (stage roads and wagon roads) encouraging tourism.
• Attractions such as geyser basins, hot springs, and hotels.
• The interaction of natural wonders with early industrial infrastructure.

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 100in (250cm). 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.