Published in 1964 using survey data from 1960, “Stamford, Connecticut” is a richly detailed US Geological Survey topographical map capturing a pivotal stretch of Fairfield County’s coast at a moment of rapid suburban transformation. Centered on Stamford and Old Greenwich, the map extends across a landscape where urban streets, wooded estates, tidal coves, rail corridors, and low coastal hills meet the waters of Long Island Sound. Its 1:24,000 scale offers an intimate view of place: precise enough to trace neighborhoods, shorelines, roads, and contours, yet broad enough to reveal the wider geographic relationship between Stamford Harbor, Greenwich Cove, Captain Harbor, and the inland ridges that rise behind them.

The US Geological Survey’s hand is evident in the disciplined clarity of the composition. Founded in 1879, the USGS became one of the great mapping institutions of the modern era, producing authoritative surveys that served science, infrastructure, resource management, military planning, and civic development. This Stamford sheet belongs to the celebrated topographic tradition in which land is rendered not merely as territory, but as measurable form. Contour lines articulate the rise and fall of the Connecticut terrain, blue waterways define the maritime edge, green marks wooded ground, and red highlights the dense human fabric of streets and settlement. The result is both utilitarian and visually elegant.

Old Greenwich appears here as a refined coastal enclave, its residential streets and shoreline setting revealing the qualities that long made it one of Connecticut’s most desirable communities. Positioned near Greenwich Cove and the inlets of Long Island Sound, it is mapped amid a graceful interplay of water, woodland, and suburban development. The cartography records the area before later decades of intensified real estate pressure and transportation expansion further reshaped the shore. Parks, wooded tracts, coves, roads, and railways appear as interdependent elements of a lived landscape—one in which proximity to New York, maritime scenery, and rolling Connecticut topography combined to produce a distinctive suburban identity.

Stamford, by contrast, is shown as a more substantial urban center, already defined by its harbor, transport routes, and dense network of streets. In the mid-twentieth century, Stamford was evolving from an industrial and commercial city into a major corporate and commuter hub, its coastal position remaining central to its geography and identity. The map captures that transitional moment with remarkable specificity: Stamford Harbor opens toward Long Island Sound, rail lines reinforce the city’s connection to the metropolitan corridor, and surrounding neighborhoods push outward into the hills and valleys beyond the waterfront. The sheet therefore documents not only terrain, but the anatomy of postwar growth.

What makes this map especially evocative is its balance between natural form and human ambition. The contour lines reveal modest but meaningful elevation changes, showing how ridges, valleys, and drainage shaped the pattern of roads and settlement. Coastal features—Greenwich Cove, Captain Harbor, Stamford Harbor, and the broader sweep of Long Island Sound—anchor the composition in a maritime world, while inland greens and residential grids signal the suburban expansion characteristic of Connecticut in the 1960s. Read today, the map offers a historical portrait of a region poised between old coastal villages, rising urban modernity, and emerging conservation concerns, all rendered through the exacting language of American topographic mapping.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Stamford
• Old Greenwich
• Greenwich
• Long Island Sound
• Stamford Harbor
• Greenwich Cove
• Captain Harbor
• Various residential neighborhoods
• Roads and railways
• Parks and wooded areas
• Water bodies, including lakes and rivers
• Nearby valleys and hills

Historical context & cartographic details

• Stamford, Connecticut is a historical 1:24,000 topographical map produced by the US Geological Survey.
• The map uses survey data from 1960 and was published with a 1964 imprint.
• The US Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the U.S. government known for detailed topographical mapping and geological surveys.
• USGS mapping has played an important role in resource management, land use planning, and environmental monitoring.
• The map reflects a period of growth and suburban development in Connecticut.
• Its cartographic style uses color coding to distinguish land uses and natural features, including green for wooded areas, red for populated regions, and blue for water bodies.
• Detailed contour lines show elevation changes, hills, valleys, and coastal topography.
• The map documents the relationship between developed areas, wooded land, transport routes, and coastal waters in mid-20th-century Fairfield County.

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 18x24in (45x60cm) 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.