Map Archives - Page 2 of 2 - Arlington Historical Society

Department of Interior 1944 Map

July 9, 2025

Similar to the 1932 map, the 1944 map was created by the U.S. Department of the Interior and shows the transition of Arlington from a rural community to a more urbanized center.

Urban Growth Map

July 9, 2025

It was created by the Federal Department of the Interior. Compared to earlier maps, this one shows more urbanization and less open space or farmland in Arlington County.

This was one of the first maps to include Arlington County as its own entity. Note that while there are pockets of urbanization in the north and south—near the city of Alexandria—most of the Arlington area is rural.

Map of Alexandria County

July 9, 2025

This map was created in 1900, when Arlington was still part of Alexandria County. It shows how Arlington’s rural character persisted into the 20th century and highlights that, for most of its history, it was not a single community but a collection of farms and small towns.

Civil War Defenses of Washington 1865

July 9, 2025

The map was created in 1865, around the end of the Civil War. The map shows the 68 forts that surrounded Washington D.C., that were built to protect it from Confederate attack.

Seat of War Map

July 8, 2025

Because of Virginia’s neutrality during the early phases of the secession crisis, Federal leadership had avoided sending cartographers into Arlington and Alexandria so as not to give the appearance of a pretext to war and invasion. Virgil P. Corbett (1827–1875), a local farmer, lawyer, politician, inventor, and businessman who called Arlington home, saw an opportunity to create a map for the government.

Department of Interior 1944 Map

Urban Growth Map

Arlington 1920

Map of Alexandria County

Civil War Defenses of Washington 1865

Seat of War Map

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