Rare Old Map of Gig Harbor, Washington by USGS, 1959: Tacoma, Point Defiance & Fox Island
Restored in our London workshop from the original 1960 map and printed to museum-grade archival standards. Full description
The Collector’s Offer
Choose two eligible works and receive 20% off both. Choose three and the lowest-priced one is complimentary, a maximum saving of 33%.
Mix and match eligible standard maps and fine-art prints. No code is required; the offer is applied automatically at checkout.
Standard made-to-order configurations are included. Bespoke sizes, personalised designs and commissioned work are excluded.
Need delivery to different addresses? Contact us before ordering.The Collector’s Offer
Choose two eligible works and receive 20% off both. Choose three and the lowest-priced one is complimentary, a maximum saving of 33%.
Mix and match eligible standard maps and fine-art prints. No code is required; the offer is applied automatically at checkout.
Standard made-to-order configurations are included. Bespoke sizes, personalised designs and commissioned work are excluded.
Need delivery to different addresses? Contact us before ordering.
Restored in London • Printed and framed in the USA
Restored from the original 1960 map and printed to museum-grade archival standards. Full description
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Gift message & custom finish
If you want to add a gift message, or a finish (jigsaw, aluminium board, etc.) that is not available here, please request it in the "order note" when you check out.
Every order is custom made, so if you need the size adjusted slightly, or printed on an unusual material, just let us know. We've done thousands of custom orders over the years, so there's (almost) nothing we can't manage.
You can also contact us before you order, if you prefer!
Own a piece of history
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Titled “Gig Harbor,” this U.S. Geological Survey topographical map captures the southern Puget Sound landscape in 1959, with a 1960 imprint marking...
Continue readingTitled “Gig Harbor,” this U.S. Geological Survey topographical map captures the southern Puget Sound landscape in 1959, with a 1960 imprint marking its publication. At the precise 1:24,000 scale favored by the USGS, it presents Gig Harbor and its surrounding peninsulas, islands, inlets, roads, and settlements with scientific clarity and understated elegance. The map records a moment when this once-quiet maritime community was poised between rural waterfront life and the suburban growth that would later reshape the region. Gig Harbor Bay, Fox Island, Point Defiance, Raft Island, North Bay, and the approaches toward Tacoma are all rendered within a finely structured cartographic framework, making the sheet both a practical geographic document and a richly evocative historical portrait.
The U.S. Geological Survey brought to this map its distinctive visual language: crisp contour lines, carefully classified roads, hydrographic detail, and measured use of color to distinguish forested land from open terrain. Green areas indicate woodland and vegetation, while white spaces suggest cleared or developed land, allowing the viewer to read the landscape as both topography and land use. The contouring reveals the rolling character of the Gig Harbor peninsula, where ridges, shorelines, coves, and small valleys shape patterns of settlement and travel. Elevation markers and landform shading make visible the subtle but consequential terrain of the Puget Sound margins, where maritime geography, glacial history, and human habitation meet in compact and intricate form.
Gig Harbor itself appears as the focal point of the sheet, set around its sheltered bay, long valued as a natural harbor for fishing vessels, small craft, and waterfront commerce. Nearby Spring Street and surrounding roads suggest the structure of the community before later expansion and heavier regional traffic transformed the area. U.S. Route 16, already a defining transportation corridor, links the harbor district to broader movements between the Kitsap Peninsula and Tacoma. The map’s road network, local access routes, and scattered neighborhoods reveal a landscape in transition: still spacious, wooded, and water-oriented, yet increasingly connected to the metropolitan orbit of Tacoma and the wider South Sound.
The water features are among the map’s most compelling elements. Gig Harbor Bay, North Bay, the channels around Fox Island, and the shoreline near Point Defiance create a maritime geography of sheltered anchorages, narrow passages, and promontories. Huelsdonk Point, Point Evangeline, Raft Island, and Cushman Dam add further texture to the coastal and inland setting, each name anchoring a different facet of the region’s human and natural history. Across the southeastern quadrant, Tacoma’s presence hints at the industrial and urban power of the mainland city, while Point Defiance evokes one of the most celebrated natural and civic landmarks of the Puget Sound, known for forest, shoreline, and commanding views.
As a historical document, this 1959 map is especially valuable for the changes it allows one to trace. Comparing its roads, wooded tracts, shorelines, and settlement patterns with the modern landscape reveals the pace of postwar development around Gig Harbor and the South Sound. Areas that appear lightly settled or forested would, in later decades, see new neighborhoods, expanded highways, commercial growth, and altered patterns of waterfront use. Yet the enduring structure of the region remains legible: the harbor, islands, peninsulas, hills, and bays continue to define the place. In this way, the map is both a technical achievement of mid-century American cartography and a quietly beautiful record of a Washington community at a pivotal moment.
Cities, towns and places on this map
- Gig Harbor
- Tacoma
- Point Defiance
- Fox Island
- Cushman Dam
- Huelsdonk Point
- Spring Street
- Point Evangeline
- North Bay
- Raft Island
- Towns and neighborhoods around Gig Harbor
- U.S. Route 16 and local access roads
- Gig Harbor Bay and smaller surrounding inlets
- Parks and natural reserves in the vicinity
Historical context & cartographic details
- Historical 1:24,000 topographical map of Gig Harbor, Washington and the surrounding area
- Created by the U.S. Geological Survey
- Dated 1959 with a 1960 imprint
- Uses color coding and contour lines to show elevation and landforms
- Green indicates forested areas, while white indicates open land
- Shows varied terrain including hills, waterways, and urban areas
- Elevation changes are depicted with contour lines
- Serves as a snapshot of the region in 1959, useful for comparing changes in development, land use, and natural features 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.
Titled “Gig Harbor,” this U.S. Geological Survey topographical map captures the southern Puget Sound landscape in 1959, with a 1960 imprint marking its publication. At the precise 1:24,000 scale favored by the USGS, it presents Gig Harbor and its surrounding peninsulas, islands, inlets, roads, and settlements with scientific clarity and understated elegance. The map records a moment when this once-quiet maritime community was poised between rural waterfront life and the suburban growth that would later reshape the region. Gig Harbor Bay, Fox Island, Point Defiance, Raft Island, North Bay, and the approaches toward Tacoma are all rendered within a finely structured cartographic framework, making the sheet both a practical geographic document and a richly evocative historical portrait.
The U.S. Geological Survey brought to this map its distinctive visual language: crisp contour lines, carefully classified roads, hydrographic detail, and measured use of color to distinguish forested land from open terrain. Green areas indicate woodland and vegetation, while white spaces suggest cleared or developed land, allowing the viewer to read the landscape as both topography and land use. The contouring reveals the rolling character of the Gig Harbor peninsula, where ridges, shorelines, coves, and small valleys shape patterns of settlement and travel. Elevation markers and landform shading make visible the subtle but consequential terrain of the Puget Sound margins, where maritime geography, glacial history, and human habitation meet in compact and intricate form.
Gig Harbor itself appears as the focal point of the sheet, set around its sheltered bay, long valued as a natural harbor for fishing vessels, small craft, and waterfront commerce. Nearby Spring Street and surrounding roads suggest the structure of the community before later expansion and heavier regional traffic transformed the area. U.S. Route 16, already a defining transportation corridor, links the harbor district to broader movements between the Kitsap Peninsula and Tacoma. The map’s road network, local access routes, and scattered neighborhoods reveal a landscape in transition: still spacious, wooded, and water-oriented, yet increasingly connected to the metropolitan orbit of Tacoma and the wider South Sound.
The water features are among the map’s most compelling elements. Gig Harbor Bay, North Bay, the channels around Fox Island, and the shoreline near Point Defiance create a maritime geography of sheltered anchorages, narrow passages, and promontories. Huelsdonk Point, Point Evangeline, Raft Island, and Cushman Dam add further texture to the coastal and inland setting, each name anchoring a different facet of the region’s human and natural history. Across the southeastern quadrant, Tacoma’s presence hints at the industrial and urban power of the mainland city, while Point Defiance evokes one of the most celebrated natural and civic landmarks of the Puget Sound, known for forest, shoreline, and commanding views.
As a historical document, this 1959 map is especially valuable for the changes it allows one to trace. Comparing its roads, wooded tracts, shorelines, and settlement patterns with the modern landscape reveals the pace of postwar development around Gig Harbor and the South Sound. Areas that appear lightly settled or forested would, in later decades, see new neighborhoods, expanded highways, commercial growth, and altered patterns of waterfront use. Yet the enduring structure of the region remains legible: the harbor, islands, peninsulas, hills, and bays continue to define the place. In this way, the map is both a technical achievement of mid-century American cartography and a quietly beautiful record of a Washington community at a pivotal moment.
Cities, towns and places on this map
- Gig Harbor
- Tacoma
- Point Defiance
- Fox Island
- Cushman Dam
- Huelsdonk Point
- Spring Street
- Point Evangeline
- North Bay
- Raft Island
- Towns and neighborhoods around Gig Harbor
- U.S. Route 16 and local access roads
- Gig Harbor Bay and smaller surrounding inlets
- Parks and natural reserves in the vicinity
Historical context & cartographic details
- Historical 1:24,000 topographical map of Gig Harbor, Washington and the surrounding area
- Created by the U.S. Geological Survey
- Dated 1959 with a 1960 imprint
- Uses color coding and contour lines to show elevation and landforms
- Green indicates forested areas, while white indicates open land
- Shows varied terrain including hills, waterways, and urban areas
- Elevation changes are depicted with contour lines
- Serves as a snapshot of the region in 1959, useful for comparing changes in development, land use, and natural features 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.
Many of our maps and art prints are chosen as thoughtful gifts for homes, offices, studies and meaningful places.
Choose a framed option for the easiest ready-to-hang gift, or choose an unframed print if the recipient may prefer to select their own frame.
We make orders locally in 23 countries around the world, so gifts can often be produced close to the recipient. This helps them arrive faster, travel more safely, and avoid customs or import duty surprises.
- We can deliver directly to the recipient
- Framed pieces arrive ready to hang
- Unframed prints are carefully packed in a strong protective tube
- Almost every order is made locally, for faster, safer gifting
- 90-day returns give the recipient time to decide
If you are not sure what to choose, please contact us. We can help you pick the right map, size, finish or delivery option.
Most orders are made locally and delivered in around 2–3 working days, depending on the product, size and destination.
We print and frame maps and artwork in 23 countries around the world, so your order is usually made close to you or your recipient. That means faster delivery, less time in transit, and no customs or import duty surprises.
Personalised and customised pieces usually take an extra 1–2 working days, because we prepare your design and send it to you for approval before printing.
Very large framed orders can take a little longer, as they need extra care in production and delivery.
Every order is carefully packaged: unframed prints are sent in a strong protective tube, while framed pieces are securely packed with protective materials around the frame.
If you need your order by a particular date, please contact us before ordering. We’ll check the best production route and delivery option for your location.
Express delivery is available at checkout for most countries. Next-day delivery is available in the UK, US, Singapore and the UAE.
Your order is covered by our 90-day returns policy and 10-year guarantee.
Our standard frame is a gallery-style black ash hardwood frame, with a simple, modern look. It is approximately 20mm (0.8in) wide. You can also view some lovely customer photos of framed maps and art.
We use super-clear acrylic glazing, also known as Perspex or Acrylite, instead of traditional glass. It is lighter, safer, and has lower reflectivity, giving the artwork a clearer, cleaner appearance.
Six standard frame colours are available at no extra cost: black, dark brown, dark grey, oak, white, and antique gold. Custom framing and mounting/matting is also available for customers looking for something more specific.
Most maps, art prints, and illustrations are also available as a framed canvas. We use matte cotton canvas, stretch it over a sustainably sourced wooden box frame, and then float the piece within a wooden outer frame. The finished result is beautifully presented, with no glazing between you and the artwork.
All frames are supplied ready to hang, with either string or brackets fitted to the back. Very large frames will include heavy-duty hanging plates and/or a mounting baton. If you have any questions, please get in touch.
We can also supply old maps and artwork on canvas, foam board, cotton rag, and other materials.
If you would prefer to frame your map or artwork yourself, please read our size guide before ordering.
Every Unique Maps piece begins with an authentic cartographic source or an original design from our London studio.
For our historic maps, we source rare originals from libraries, archives, auction houses and private collections around the world. We carefully restore each map for print—repairing age-related damage, balancing colour and improving clarity while preserving its original detail, texture and character.
Once restored, the map is prepared for your chosen size and finish. Your piece is then printed and, where selected, framed close to its delivery destination.
Our map prints use acid-free 200gsm archival matte paper and fade-resistant pigment inks, creating a rich, non-glossy finish designed to last. Framed maps use crystal-clear optical acrylic and arrive ready to hang.
Canvas, cotton-rag and other specialist presentations are also available. Learn more about our materials and finishes.
Personalising your map
You can add a short title or dedication, mark one meaningful place, or request one considered visual detail. For personalised designs, we send a proof before printing and you can request changes before approval.
For more complex bespoke commissions, contact our design team.
Original or Aged
Choose Original for true-to-source colour, or Aged for a warmer, richer antique character created with our specialist ageing process. See examples of our Aged maps.
We’ve been restoring and producing maps and art prints since 1984, and we stand behind every piece.
Every order is covered by our 10-year guarantee and damage-free delivery guarantee. If your piece arrives damaged, we’ll replace or remake it free of charge. If anything else isn’t right, contact our workshop team and we’ll put it right promptly.
See our returns and refund policy for full details.
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