Rand McNally & Co., Railroad Map of Illinois (1898)

As Susan Schulten writes in "Mapping American History," a chapter in the edited book, Maps: Finding Our Place in the World, the growth of railroads in the United States led to a demand for maps that not only documented the railroads' expansiveness, but also provided as much information as possible about the towns and stations they reached. Chicago-based Rand McNally led the way in producing such maps, using a relatively inexpensive printing technique called wax engraving that allowed them to include as much data on the maps as possible. This map of Illinois towns and railroads is typical of such maps, with its impressive array of criss-crossing railroads connecting cities throughout the state.