Central Pacific Railroad Photographic History Museum

---

Home Exhibits Chinese History FAQ's Links

Rights & Permissions; Homework

Museum HOMEPAGE  EXHIBITS Index  —Favorite CPRR Stereographs  —Hart Stereoviews  —New York Public Library  —Muybridge Stereoviews  —Union Pacific Railroad  —Unknowns  —Railroad Maps  —Engravings  —Ephemera and Collectibles  —Nelson's Guidebook, 1871  —Railroads Shipped by Sea  —Locomotive Falcon  Stereograph Catalogs  READ ABOUT  —Lewis M. Clement Biography  —Eastward to Promontory ...  Chinese Railroad Workers  Book List  Online Books  Hopkins RR Library Catalog  Links to other websites  Webrings  Frequently Asked Questions  How you can help / plans  What's New  Technical Notes  Special Requests  User Agreement  Site Map  CPRR.org Welcome  E-mail  Search Internet

---

© 2014 CPRR.org. Use of this Web site constitutes acceptance of the User Agreement which permits personal use web viewing only; no copying; arbitration; no warranty.

---

Central Pacific Railroad Maps
[Click on a map to get an enlarged view in a separate window.]

© 2010 CPRR.org. Use of this Web site constitutes acceptance of the User Agreement which permits personal use web viewing only; no copying; arbitration; no warranty.
Do not use these historic maps for travel or navigation!

Read the Introduction to "Railroad Maps of the United States:  A Selective Annotated Bibliography of Original 19th-century Maps in the Geography and Map Division of the Library of Congress." by Andrew M. Modelski.  Library of Congress, Washington, D.C., 1975.

ADDITIONAL TRANSCONTINENTAL RAILROAD MAPS:
[Click on a map to enlarge, or choose a linked map.]

• 

San Francisco to Chicago via the CPRR, UPRR, & Burlington Route, A. A. Hart, Traveller's Own Map, 1870.  Courtesy Library of Congress and Anonymous Donor.
[Also see Burlington History.]
 
• 
CPRR - UPRR Timetable Map, 1881, Rand McNally, verso. (Showing RR Land Grants.)  Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection. [Enlarge Map; Western Portion]
 
• 
  Map Showing the Pacific Railways and their Branches. Prepared for the United States Pacific Railway Commission. Prepared by G.W. & C.R. Colton & Co., 1887. Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection. [Enlarge CPRR/UPRR Portion]
  
• 
  "Diagram of the Transcontinental lines of road Showing the Original Central Pacific and Union Pacific And their Competitors." Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
  
• Theodore Judah's "Location Map of the Line of the Central Pacific Railroad of California" - portion of survey from Donner Summit to Truckee. Courtesy California State Archives.
• Map of Central California showing the different railroad lines completed and projected, 1860. Courtesy California State Library.
• Gibbes' New Map of the Gold Region, California. Stockton, Calif., J.D. Gibbes; New York, Sherman & Smith, 1851. Courtesy USGenWeb California Digital Map Archive and the Library of Congress.
• Map of the Union Pacific Railroad and Connections, c. 1867.
• Land Office Map of the Central Pacific Railroad and the Dutch Flat Donner Lake Wagon Road, BLM, Sacramento. Courtesy Dana Scanlon.
• Map of the Central Pacific Railroad of California from the 39th to the 98th mile inclusive, showing connections with the U.S. Land Surveys. Sacramento, Cal. 1866. Courtesy Bud Uzes.
• Colton Map of the Union Pacific Railroad and Connections, c. 1867.
• Map of North America, published in London in 1745 by R.W. Seale, showing California as an island. Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
• Map of Lewis and Clark's, Track across the Western Portion of North America, from the Mississippi to the Pacific Ocean, ... in 1804, 5, & 6. Courtesy Deja View Antique Maps and Prints.
• Maps of Upper California, 1841 and 1849.
• A New Map of the United States upon which are delineated the vast works of International comunication, Routes Across the Continent, &c. by W. Williams. Philadelphia. Published by Lippincot, Grambo & Co., 1851. Courtesy Norman Davis.
• Colton Map for Horn's Overland Guide to California and Oregon, 1852.
• United States map by John Bartholomew appeared in "General Atlas of World" published 1857 by Adam and Charles Black in Edinburgh. Courtesy Witold Nazarewicz.
• The Prairie Traveler.  A Hand-book for Overland Expeditions.  Routes to California and Oregon.  Map: Sketch of the Different Roads Embraced in the Itineraries.  Capt. Randolph B. Marcy. 1859.
• Commercial Map of the United States showing the principal connecting lines of Railroad across the Country, also the Proposed Railroad Routes to the Pacific, from Warren's Geography, Philadelphia, H. Cowperthwait & Co., 1859.
• "Territory and Military Department of Utah" (1860-1865) from "Atlas to Accompany the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies" U.S. War Records Office, 1894. [Map from San Francisco to Ogden]  Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper.
• Map of the Union Pacific Rail Road and surveys of 1864, 65, 66, 67, 1868 from Missouri River to Humboldt Wells, G.M. Dodge, Chief Engineer. [With UPRR Elevation Profile.] Courtesy Library of Congress.

 
• 

Chief Engineer Samuel S. Montague's Official Linen CPRR Survey Map, Nevada County, California, 1868. Courtesy of Debbie A. Kenitzer.
 
• New! Ogden Junction Map, December 1869. Courtesy of Larry Mullaly.
• U.S. Territorial Maps 1775-1920 - 1860, 1870. University of Virginia.
• Profile Map of the Pacific Railroad, from Harper's Weekly December 7, 1867.  Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
• Elevation Profile: CPRR Elevations, Grades, Ascents, Rise & Fall, Maximum Curve, Curvature, & Date First Used by Location / Milepost.
Courtesy G.J. Graves.
• Appleton's Railway Guide, 1869.
• Map from "Beyond the Mississippi" by A. D. Richardson, 1869.
• Map of the Pony Express Route April 3, 1860 - October 24, 1861 by William Henry Jackson. Courtesy Library of Congress.
• Colton German Pacific Railroad Map, 1870: "Karte der verschiendenen Pacific Eisenbahnen und deren Verbindung mit anderen Bahnen; für die 'N.Y. Handels Zeitung' gezeichne". Courtesy Library of Congress.
• Omaha City, Nebraska. Oscar F. Davis, 1866. Courtesy Omaha Public Library.
• Omaha, Nebraska Panorama. Chicago Lithographing Co., 1868. Courtesy Omaha Public Library.
• Omaha, Nebraska. Byron Reed, 1870. Courtesy Omaha Public Library.
• Omaha, Nebraska Panorama. Chicago Lithographing Co., 1876. Courtesy Omaha Public Library.
• Omaha, Nebraska. Geo. P. Bemis, 1878. Courtesy Omaha Public Library.
• Map of Nebraska showing the Union Pacific Railroad Land Grants, 1880. Courtesy Nebraska Studies and the Library of Congress.
• Map from Nelson's Pictorial Guidebook, 1871.
• Pacific States Railroad Map, 1872, from "THE GOLDEN STATE: A History of the Region West of the Rocky Mountains" by R. Guy McClellan.   Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
• Maps of California, the Sacramento Valley, and the San Joaquin Valley from "California: A Book for Travellers and Settlers" by Charles Nordhoff  (Harper & Brothers, New York, 1873).  Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
• Lewis M. Clement's copy of Map Exhibiting the Salt Marsh, Tide and Submerged Lands ... Bays of San Francisco and San Pablo ... 1878. Courtesy David Rumsey Map Collection.
• San Francisco Bay Area Railroad Map, Rand McNally, c. 1878.  Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
• Colton 1876 Map of California to accompany printed agreement of S.O. Houghton as to the rights of the Southern Pacific R.R. Co. of Cal. to government lands under Acts of Congress passed July 27, 1866 and March 3, 1871 made before the Committee of the Judiciary of the Senate and House of Representatives in May 1876. Courtesy Library of Congress.
• Railroad Land Grants in California from a People's Independent Party map of 1875. LandGrant.org. [Enlarge map]
• New rail road map of the United States and the Dominion of Canada, showing the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific R.R.; the great overland route and short line to the west and south-west, 1879.
Courtesy Library of Congress.
 
• 
  New Map of the Union Pacific Railway, the Short, Quick and Safe Line to All Points West, Rand McNally and Company, 1883. Courtesy Library of Congress.
   
• Guidebook to the Western United States, 26 Maps: Geologic and Topographic Map of the Overland Route from Omaha, Nebraska, to San Francisco, California, United States Geological Survey, 1915. US Geological Survey, Bulletin 612, 1916.
• Thirteen California Survey Maps from the Bureau of Land Management, Sacramento.  Courtesy Dana Scanlon.
• Nevada Survey Map.Courtesy Larry Hersh.
• Wadsworth Nevada Survey Map.  Courtesy Larry Hersh.
• Reno, Nevada Map, 1868.  Courtesy Larry Hersh.
• Five Nevada Survey Maps from the Washoe County Recorders Office.  Courtesy R. Joe King Collection.
• Railroad Town Maps c. 1908-1915: Rocklin, California, and Wadsworth, Carlin, and Wells, Nevada (showing roundhouses).
• Historic Nevada Topographic Maps - Index Map - List - Reno, 1893 - Wadsworth, 1894 - Carson Sink, 1910 - Lovelock, 1935 - Sonoma Range, 1939 - More.  Courtesy Keck Library, University of Nevada, Reno.
• Union Pacific Railroad Route Map, 1891, from the Grain Dealers and Shippers Gazetteer which contains numerous other railroad maps.  Courtesy Pam Rietsch.
S. Augustus Mitchell 1867 Atlas, County Map of California.
• S. Augustus Mitchell 1871 County Maps of California, and Nevada/Utah.[Reproduction of similar 1866 California map.]
• 1826 map reprinted in the Pacific Railroad Surveys Vol. XI (Lt. Warren), Plate III, 1861.

• Asa Whitney's 1849 map of proposed routes for the Pacific Railroad. Courtesy Library of Congress.
• William Jarvis McAlpine Map of Proposed Routes for a Pacific Railroad, 1853. Courtesy Library of Congress.
• 1857 map Gouverneur Kemble Warren's Map of Routes for a Pacific Railroad, U.S. War Dept. report to Congress, 1857. Courtesy Library of Congress.

 
• 

Western United States Map from the Pacific Railroad Surveys, 1858. Courtesy Library of Congress.
 
Geological Map of a part of the State of California Explored in 1853 - Pacific Railroad Surveys, 1855. Courtesy Andrea Woolfolk, Elkhorn Slough Foundation.
• Maps from the Pacific Railroad Surveys. Courtesy Library of Congress.
• Western United States Map from the Pacific Railroad Surveys, 1858. Courtesy Library of Congress.
• Western United States Map from the Pacific Railroad Surveys, 1858. Courtesy Library of Congress.
• Western United States Map from the Pacific Railroad Surveys, 1858. Courtesy Library of Congress.
• 1858 California map of Transcontinental Stagecoach Lines.  UCB Map Library (Index)
• Map of the Central Portion of the United States showing the Lines of the Proposed Pacific railroads. Courtesy Library of Congress.
• C. Bielawski's Railroad Map of the Central Part of California, and Part of Nevada. 1865. Copied June 12th 1866.  Courtesy Library of Congress.
   
• 

Map of the routes of the Union Pacific Rail Roads with their eastern connections ... by W.J. Keeler, Civil Engineer, November, 1867.   Courtesy Library of Congress.
 
• 

New trans-continental map of the Pacific R.R. and routes of overland travel ... Henry T. Williams, c. 1877.   Courtesy Library of Congress. Also see Smithsonian Exhibit.
 
• 

Map showing the Union Pacific Railway and connecting railroads.  G.W. & C.B. Colton & Co. New York, 1882.  Courtesy Library of Congress.
 
• 

Map showing the Pacific Railroads and their branches; prepared for the United States Pacific Railway Commission.  G.W. & C.B. Colton & Co.  New York, [1887].  Courtesy Library of Congress.
 
Map exhibiting the several Pacific railroads prepared for the report on the internal commerce of the United States by the Bureau of Statistics. Rand, McNally & Co., 1883. Courtesy Library of Congress.
• Modern map showing "Transcontinental Railroad Lines, 1880's".  Courtesy W. W. Norton & Company.
• Central Pacific Railroad Timetable & Map, May, 1869. Courtesy Sacramento History Online.
• "Rand, McNally & Co.'s United States" in Rand McNally & Co.'s Business Atlas, Chicago, Rand McNally, 1878. Courtesy Newberry Library.
• California map from Rand McNally's 1887 Pocket Atlas of the World.  Courtesy Shirley Cooper.

 
• 

Map showing the Union Pacific Railway and branch lines.  G.W. & C.B. Colton & Co. New York, 1888.  Courtesy Library of Congress.
 
• Union Pacific Tourist Map, 1890 from the UPRR's Map Gallery (not affiliated with the CPRR Museum)
  
• Map Showing the Line of the Union Pacific Railroad. G.W. & C.B. Colton & Co., New York. From the Union Pacific Railroad Annual Report, 1876.
  
• 

A correct map of the United States showing the Union Pacific, the overland route and connections. Knight, Leonard & Company, 1892.  Courtesy Library of Congress and Art Source International.


• New enlarged scale railroad and county map of California showing every railroad station and post office in the state. Rand McNally and Company, Chicago, 1883.  Courtesy Library of Congress.
  
• New Railroad and County Map of Northern California and Nevada.
Panoramic Map of San Francisco from "Historical Souvenir of San Francisco, Cal." View Book by C. P. Heininger, San Francisco, Cal., c. 1887.
• The Unique map of California. by E. McD. Johnston, SPRR and the State Board of Trade, 1888.  Courtesy Library of Congress and the Smithsonian Institution.
  
• County and Township Map of Utah and Nevada from Mitchell's New General Atlas, 1882.
  
Map of the Burlington and Missouri River R.R., the Burlington Route and its connections. Rand McNally and Company, 1882. Courtesy Library of Congress.

Map of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy R.R., 1879. Courtesy Library of Congress.
New Rail Road and County Map of Northern California and Nevada. George Cram, 1881.
• Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroad Timetable Map, 1882.  Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
  
• Missouri Pacific Railway Map and Timetable, 1883.
  
• Southern Pacific Railroad Annual Report, 1894, Western and US railroad maps.
  
• "Guide Map of the Rail and Stage Routes to the Yosemite, Big Trees and the Geysers" from the Specimen Book of Electrotypes, 1885. Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
• "Map of Summer & Winter Resorts and other places upon and near the Central & Southern Pacific Railroads in California" from the Specimen Book of Electrotypes, 1885. Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
• "Map of Railroads from San Francisco to Sacramento" from the Specimen Book of Electrotypes, 1885. Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
• "Map of Oakland California and the CPRR Long Wharf" from the Specimen Book of Electrotypes, 1885. Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
• Post Offices visited by trains of the Central Pacific Railroad on local lines, Oakland, California.  Annual Report of the Postmaster General, 1876.  Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
• Map showing the old stage and wagon roads and railway surveys across the Sierras, from "The Story of the Central Pacific. The Rise of the Big Four: Huntington, Stanford, Crocker, and Hopkins." By W. F. Bailey. The Pacific Monthly, January, 1908. Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
  
• 

Map from "The OVERLAND ROUTE to the Road of a Thousand Wonders:  The Route of the Union Pacific & Southern Pacific from Omaha to San Francisco — A Journey of Eighteen Hundred Miles Where Once the Bison & the Indian Reigned"  Union and Southern Pacific Railroad Passenger Departments, 1908.
Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
 
• 

Land Grant Checkerboard:  Central Pacific Land Company Lands in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California, and in Nevada, 1924.  Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
 
• Map of the Southern Pacific Lines: Sunset, Ogden and Shasta Routes and Connections. From The Overland Trail: From The Golden Gate to The Great Salt LakeAlong the Southern Pacific – The Road of a Thousand Wonders (c. after 1913).
• Map of the First Pacific Telegraph Line, 1861.  Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
• Maps from the Illustrated history of the Panama Railroad. by Fessenden Nott Otis, Harper & Brothers, New York, 1861.  Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
• Map of the Panama Canal and Panama Railroad by Everett E. Winchell, 1913.  Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.


• Map of the San Francisco Bay area by Everett E. Winchell, 1913 with rail lines and ferries.  Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
• Parker Map of Motor Routes Between San Franciso and Los Angeles, Also Sacramento, Reno, Lake Taho, Yosemite Valley, And Other Sierra Points. From "A Guide to Los Angeles and Southern California" published by the Southern California Tourist Bureau, Los Angeles (August, 1919), 24pp. Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
• The River Lines [The "Delta" Route] Sacramento Steamer & Highway Route Map, Schedule, 1932. Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
Historic Map of the Southern Pacific's Rail Lines, 1944. Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.

• Market Street Railway Map of San Francisco, including cable cars, 1943.  Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
• City of Philadelphia, grounds of the Centennial Exhibition, and railroads, 1876.  Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
  
• Centennial American Republic and railroad map of the United States and of the Dominion of Canada. Compiled from the latest official sources.Watson, Gaylord, 1875. Courtesy Library of Congress.
• Maps Showing the Progressive Development of U.S. Railroads,1830-1950. Association of American Railroads, Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper Collection.
• Transcontinental railroad route map.  Courtesy University of Texas.
• American Indian [native american] nation territories map of the west. Courtesy University of Texas Library.
• Current Amtrak map showing present day passenger rail travel routes.
• U.S. Geological Survey Contour Maps of the entire United States On-line.  Courtesy TopoZone.
• U.S. Geological Survey Togographic Map On-line MapServer.  Courtesy MapTech.
• U.S. Geological Survey Togographic Map On-line MapServer.   Courtesy Acme Mapper.
• Map of Location of Central Pacific Railroad of California from Sacramento to Big Bend of Truckee, 1861. Courtesy National Archives.
• Map of the Railroad Survey from Omaha, Nebraska, to San Francisco, California, June 30, 1867. Courtesy National Archives.
• Map of the Western Division of the Central Pacific Railroad Company. Courtesy National Archives.
• Create Your Own Map Online



• 
Geologic Atlas of the United States, Sierra Nevada Folios: Selected California Maps (1/4 images of Quadrangle Maps) showing the Central Pacific Railroad by Waldemar Lindgren, USGS, 1894-1900. Courtesy Craig Crouch and the Sacramento Public Library. [Also see: Background information about Historic Topographic Maps]


• Historic Topographic Maps of California: San Francisco Bay Area. Courtesy USGS & the UC Berekeley Earth Sciences & Map Library.
• OVERLAND ROUTE MAPS, 1915, 26 USGS Topographic Maps: San Francisco - Omaha
• Transcontinental Railroad GOOGLE MAP. Courtesy of Dave Keith.
• WESTERN U.S. ATLAS MAPS.  Courtesy Art Source International.
  

You may need to use a different web browser to see the right side of large map images.

---

Book References:

• Modelski, Andrew M. Railroad Maps of North America. The First Hundred Years. Washington, D.C., Library of Congress, 1984. Many color map reproductions. (Not to be confused with Modelski's 1975 booklet.)
  
• Wheat, Carl I. Mapping the Trans-Mississippi West 1540-1861. Vol. IV. From the Pacific Railroad Surveys to the Onset of the Civil War. San Francisco, Institute of Historical Cartography, 1960. [Limited to 1000 copies.] This definitive work on the cartographic history of the West was designed by the Grabhorn Press and produced by several San Francisco printers. Map reproductions are black and white.

---

J.H. Colton 1853 Advertisment
From " A New and Complete STATISTICAL GAZETTEER of the UNITED STATES of AMERICA founded on and compiled from OFFICIAL FEDERAL & STATE RETURNS and the SEVENTH NATIONAL CENSUS." By Richard Swainson Fisher, M.D. New York, J. H. Colton, 1853. Courtesy of the Bruce C. Cooper Collection.

---

Railroad & Historical Cartography Links

• Library of Congress Animated Presentation - Mapping the West
• History Matters: Making Sense of Maps
• Modern United States Railroad Map
• Oddens' Bookmarks - 17,000+ Cartographic Links
• Library of Congress Railroad Maps - Search the Library of Congress Map Collection
• National Archives, two 1878-1887 maps show Central Pacific Railroad lines and connections in California, Nevada, and Utah
• Amtrak Interactive Route Map [Red=Amtrak; Green=Bus Route]
• "Maptech" Tool for Identifying Points on Maps
• Railroad survey question
• Wichita State University Libraries, Digitized Kansas Maps
• USGS National Map Viewer
• USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection
• Big Map Blog, Railroad Maps
• Virtual Library - Historic Maps
• Early Maps of the Americas
• Art Source International - 10,000 maps online
• Deja View Antique Maps and Prints - Western Maps - Southwestern Maps - U.S. Maps - Cartography References - Prints
• History of Cartography - Links
• Historic U.S. Maps - Links
• Omaha, Nebraska Early Maps. Courtesy Omaha Public Library.
• Trails of Hope - Overland Trails Maps
• RareMaps - Antique Map Links
• USGenWeb Archives - United States Digital Map Library
• 1895 U.S. On-line Atlas
• Map Exhibition on Westward Expansion in America - Heading West, New York Public Library
• U.C. Berkeley Library - Digital Map Collection
• William A. Bowen's California Geographical Survey - Cal State Northridge, Dept. of Geography - Electronic Map Library - Atlas - Panoramic Aerial Maps of the American West - Panoramic Aerial Maps of the South Central Sierra Nevada - American River and Lake Tahoe; Donner Pass looking North; Reno looking Southwest
• David Rumsey Map Collection
• Union Pacific Railroad's Map Gallery
• History Matters – Maps Online
• Hargrett University of Georgia Libraries, Rare Map Collection - Transportation
• US Historical Archive - [LOC] Railroad Map Reprints & CD's - Rand McNally US Map 1883
• KJA Posters and Prints - Historic [LOC] Railroad Map Reprints
• The History CD - [LOC] Railroad Maps
• MrSID format map viewing plug-in for Macintosh Graphic Converter software. (Lizardtech's MrSID is used by the Library of Congress.)
• Navtica LOC railroad maps
• Detailed Interstate Commerce Commission Railroad Valuation Maps at the National Archives
• "Envisioning the American West: Maps, the Representational Barrage of 19th Century Expedition Reports, and the Production of Scientific Knowledge."  J.B. Krygier. Cartography and GIS 24(1): 27-50, 1997.

 
Museum Bookshop