Titled simply “Hendersonville,” this US Geological Survey quadrangle captures a revealing moment in Middle Tennessee, mapped in 1952 and issued with a 1953 imprint. At the detailed 1:24,000 scale, it presents Hendersonville and its surrounding countryside with the precision and restraint characteristic of mid-century American topographic mapping. The sheet records a landscape poised between rural continuity and suburban transformation, lying northeast of Nashville along the Cumberland River corridor. Roads, waterways, contours, and settlement patterns are shown with remarkable clarity, offering a view of the region before later waves of residential growth reshaped its fields, shorelines, and transportation routes. As both a scientific document and a historical portrait, it preserves Hendersonville at a pivotal postwar moment.

The map was produced by the United States Geological Survey, the federal agency whose cartographic work became the standard reference for American landscapes in the twentieth century. USGS topographic maps were designed not merely to locate places, but to explain terrain: elevations, drainage, vegetation, routes, and built features all appear within a coherent visual system. Here, contour lines articulate the rolling relief of the Nashville Basin and its surrounding uplands, while blue waterways and green vegetated areas create an immediate sense of landform and environment. Roads, railways, buildings, and community features are rendered through the agency’s conventional symbols, giving the map both technical precision and understated elegance.

Hendersonville’s geography is inseparable from water, and this map emphasizes the presence of the Cumberland River and the Old Hickory Lake area as defining features of the region. Lindley’s Bend, Indian Lake, and smaller streams and inlets help reveal the complex relationship between settlement and shoreline. The contours show the gentle but persistent undulations of Middle Tennessee: ridges, hollows, low divides, and drainage courses that shaped travel, farming, and development. Rather than presenting the land as a flat plan, the map gives it volume and rhythm. The eye can follow elevations rising from river bottoms, trace creeks through wooded ground, and understand why roads and communities took the routes they did.

The human landscape shown here is equally compelling. Hendersonville appears as a significant populated place, linked by a network of roads to nearby Nashville and surrounding communities. The map records a pattern of settlement that still reflects older agricultural and river-based geographies, even as postwar infrastructure begins to suggest future expansion. Labeled roads, community landmarks, recreational symbols, and transport corridors reveal how residents moved through and used the landscape in the early 1950s. The proximity to Nashville is especially important: Hendersonville’s later identity as a desirable lakeside suburb was rooted in the connections already visible on this map, where rural roads and emerging commuter routes meet.

As a historical document, “Hendersonville” offers a valuable baseline for understanding change in Sumner County and the greater Nashville region. The early 1950s were years of rapid modernization across the American South, when improved highways, expanding metropolitan areas, and new recreational landscapes began altering formerly rural districts. Comparing this map with the present-day city reveals transformations in land use, shoreline development, neighborhoods, and transportation. Yet the enduring framework remains visible: the Cumberland River, Old Hickory Lake, Indian Lake, the bends and ridges, and the broad topographic structure that still governs the area. Elegant in its clarity and rich in historical evidence, this USGS map preserves Hendersonville before its modern suburban identity fully emerged.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Hendersonville
• Nashville nearby
• Old Hickory Lake
• Cumberland River
• Lindley’s Bend
• Indian Lake
• Labeled roads
• Topographic landmarks
• Parks and recreational areas

Historical context & cartographic details

• Produced by the US Geological Survey, USGS
• Historical topographical map of Hendersonville, Tennessee, and surrounding areas
• Created in 1952 with a 1953 imprint
• Scale of 1:24,000
• Uses contour lines to show elevation and terrain relief
• Color coding helps distinguish land elevation and water features
• Conventional symbols mark roads, railways, and infrastructure
• Shows the undulating terrain of the region, including water bodies and vegetative coverage
• Reflects the Hendersonville landscape in the early 1950s
• Useful for understanding changes in urban development, land use, and infrastructure over time

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 16x20in (40x50cm) 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.