The Midwest in 1858

ResearchBuzz just made note of some new maps on the David Rumsey Map Collection, which provoked me to look around there. I was especially struck by the regional maps with counties and railroads from an 1858 atlas.

Just go to the Rumsey site and type in "Colton 1858 [your state name here]" minus the quotes and the brackets. I love the unformed counties, but especially the sparseness of the railroad lines. You can see where it would have been comparatively easy for your ancestors to travel, assuming they had the cash and a schedule!