Published in 1964 from 1959 survey work, the US Geological Survey’s “Newburg” presents a finely observed topographical portrait of eastern Wisconsin at a moment when village, industry, farmland, woodland, and lakeshore still met in intimate proximity. Although titled for Newburg, the map’s field of interest prominently includes Kohler, Sheboygan, Sheboygan Falls, Black River, Riverside Park, and the approaches to Lake Michigan. At 1:24,000 scale, it belongs to the USGS quadrangle tradition: exacting, practical, and quietly elegant. Roads, rail lines, streams, settlement patterns, and contour intervals are organized into a clear visual hierarchy, offering both geographic precision and a vivid record of the region’s mid-twentieth-century landscape.

Kohler is one of the map’s most compelling presences, a planned industrial village whose name became synonymous with American plumbing design and manufacturing. Founded around the Kohler Company, the village developed with an unusual degree of civic intention, blending factory, housing, green space, and resort culture into a distinctive Wisconsin community. On this map, Kohler’s position near Sheboygan and Sheboygan Falls reveals its relationship to older settlement routes, water power traditions, and modern transportation corridors. The cartography captures a place shaped not only by industry, but by landscape design and recreation, with parks, wooded tracts, and nearby waterways giving the village a character quite unlike an ordinary factory town.

The Sheboygan area shown here is equally rich in historical texture. Sheboygan, set beside Lake Michigan, long served as a maritime and commercial center, while Sheboygan Falls grew inland along river corridors that supported mills, trade, and agriculture. The map’s depiction of roads, state routes, rail alignments, and local streets records a regional network before later suburban expansion fully transformed the county’s spatial character. Riverside Park and the Black River add further depth, anchoring the map in a landscape of recreation, drainage, and ecological transition. The nearby lakeshore, though only one element in the composition, gives the entire sheet a sense of orientation toward the great inland sea.

As a USGS topographic map, “Newburg” is distinguished by its disciplined cartographic language. Brown contour lines describe the subtle rises and falls of Wisconsin’s glaciated terrain, while blue waterways, green wooded areas, and black cultural features create an efficient yet beautiful code. Small lakes, ponds, unnamed streams, and branching drainage patterns appear with the quiet authority characteristic of federal survey mapping. The terrain is not mountainous, but the contours reveal the shaping force of ice, water, and settlement over time. Fields, forest patches, parkland, transport corridors, and developed places are all held in balance, making the map both scientifically useful and visually absorbing.

Viewed today, this 1959 survey offers a valuable historical snapshot of land use in eastern Wisconsin before the accelerating changes of the late twentieth century. It preserves the relationship between compact communities, working landscapes, wooded parcels, waterways, and the infrastructure that connected them. For collectors drawn to industrial heritage, Midwestern geography, or the refined clarity of USGS design, the map is especially evocative: Kohler’s planned village, Sheboygan’s lakeside identity, Sheboygan Falls’ inland history, and the natural corridors around Black River are all present in one carefully measured composition. It is a document of place, but also of an era when modern America was being mapped with extraordinary precision.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Kohler
• Sheboygan
• Sheboygan Falls
• Riverside Park
• Black River
• Lake Michigan
• Various unnamed streams and rivers
• Numerous small lakes and ponds
• Forested areas and parks
• Major roads, including highways and state routes
• Rail lines
• Contour elevations shown throughout the map

Historical context & cartographic details

• Map title: Newburg
• Produced by the US Geological Survey as a historical 1:24,000 topographical map.
• Dated 1959, with a 1964 imprint.
• Published by the US Geological Survey, known for detailed geographic and topographic mapping.
• Prominently features Kohler, Wisconsin, a village associated with the plumbing industry and resort history.
• Uses a clear, color-coded system to show land use and topographical features.
• Includes contour lines to indicate changes in elevation, consistent with USGS standards.
• Shows varied terrain, water bodies, and green shaded areas representing forests and natural vegetation.
• Provides insight into Wisconsin’s late-1950s geography, development, and land use.

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.