Old Map of Little Rock, Arkansas by USGS, 1941 – North Little Rock, Arkansas River & Saline River

Titled “Alexander,” this 1941 U.S. Geological Survey topographical map presents Little Rock, North Little Rock, and the surrounding Arkansas landscape at a detailed 1:62,500 scale. Created from survey data of the same year, it captures the region at a revealing historical moment, just before the dramatic postwar expansion of suburbs, highways, and civic infrastructure reshaped central Arkansas. The map’s measured precision is immediately apparent: the Arkansas River arcs through the composition as a defining natural and commercial corridor, while roads, settlements, waterways, and relief are rendered with the disciplined clarity characteristic of USGS mapping. As a record of place, it offers a richly textured view of Pulaski County and its environs before modern development transformed the metropolitan footprint.

The U.S. Geological Survey brought to this map the institutional rigor that made its topographic sheets indispensable to engineers, planners, geologists, and military strategists alike. Founded in the late nineteenth century, the USGS developed a national cartographic language built on accuracy, consistency, and close observation of terrain. In “Alexander,” that tradition is visible in the careful use of contour lines, which describe ridges, valleys, and subtle elevation changes across the Arkansas countryside. Brown contouring and pale terrain fields create a restrained but elegant visual hierarchy, allowing rivers, roads, and settlements to emerge clearly. The result is both scientific and beautiful: a map designed for practical use, yet possessing the quiet aesthetic authority of classic American survey cartography.

Little Rock occupies a position of special significance on the map, set beside the Arkansas River and connected to nearby communities by a growing network of roads. As the capital of Arkansas, the city had long been a political and commercial center, but in 1941 it still retained a scale and spatial relationship to the surrounding countryside that would soon change. North Little Rock appears across the river, reinforcing the importance of the waterway as both boundary and connector. Later, Little Rock would become internationally known for its central role in the civil rights movement, particularly the 1957 desegregation crisis at Central High School. This map predates that defining chapter, preserving the city’s geography before those events entered the national historical consciousness.

The rivers shown on the map give the region much of its character. The Arkansas River dominates the northern portion, its broad course shaping settlement, transport, and industry. Smaller waterways, including the Saline River and Maumelle River, trace gentler routes through the surrounding terrain, marking lowlands, drainage patterns, and natural corridors. These rivers were more than scenic features; they structured agriculture, influenced road placement, and defined the relationship between town and countryside. The contour work reveals how valleys and ridges unfold around them, showing the subtle topographic complexity of central Arkansas. Parks and lightly shaded undeveloped areas suggest an older landscape of open ground, woodland, and rural margins pressing close to the capital city.

Roads such as Highways 67 and 70, along with numerous smaller unnamed routes, form another compelling layer of the map’s historical story. In 1941, America stood on the threshold of wartime mobilization and, soon after, a period of profound transportation change. This sheet records a pre-interstate landscape, where highways followed older alignments and local roads linked farms, river crossings, and small communities. The absence of later expressways and expanded suburban grids makes the map especially evocative, revealing how compact Little Rock and North Little Rock once were in relation to their hinterland. “Alexander” is therefore not merely a topographical document, but a poised snapshot of central Arkansas before the acceleration of modern urban growth.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Little Rock
• North Little Rock
• Saline River
• Arkansas River
• Maumelle River
• Pulaski County
• Highway 67
• Highway 70
• Various unnamed smaller roads
• Parks and undeveloped areas indicated by lighter shading

Historical context & cartographic details

• Map title: Alexander
• Historical 1:62,500 topographical map created using survey data from 1941
• Published by the U.S. Geological Survey
• The USGS is known for its detailed and systematic mapping of the United States, with an important role in geological and topographical research
• Shows Little Rock, Arkansas, and its surrounding landscapes during a period before substantial urban development and infrastructure change
• Little Rock is the capital city of Arkansas and later became especially significant in civil rights history
• Features a classic topographical design with contour lines indicating elevation changes
• Uses shades of brown and white to represent terrain relief
• Provides detailed elevation contours showing landforms, ridges, and valleys characteristic of the Arkansas terrain
• Records road systems, rivers, settlements, and undeveloped areas as they appeared in 1941

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