Rare Old Map of Houston, Texas by USGS, 1922: Harris County, Buffalo Bayou & Houston Harbor
Restored in our London workshop from the original 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 Australia
My maps are rare, museum-grade, restored old maps sourced from libraries, auction houses and private collections across the globe. Full description
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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.
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Titled “Settegast” and dated 1922, this US Geological Survey topographical map presents Houston, Texas, and its surrounding Harris County landscape at a...
Continue readingTitled “Settegast” and dated 1922, this US Geological Survey topographical map presents Houston, Texas, and its surrounding Harris County landscape at a revealing moment in the city’s expansion. Drawn at a 1:31,680 scale, it captures both the urban form of Houston and the transitional country beyond it: neighborhoods, roads, rail lines, bayous, fields, wooded tracts, and industrial areas. The title refers to Settegast, a community northeast of central Houston, here situated within a wider geography shaped by transportation corridors and waterways. As a record of Houston before its later metropolitan sprawl, the map offers a finely grained view of the city when its streets, harbor facilities, and outlying agricultural lands still stood in close proximity.
The US Geological Survey’s topographic style gives the map its authority and quiet elegance. Founded in 1879, the USGS became the American standard-bearer for systematic mapping, producing maps used by engineers, planners, conservationists, landowners, and government agencies. Here, the agency’s characteristic use of contour lines and color differentiation translates the low Gulf Coast terrain into legible form. Houston is not a mountainous city, yet the subtle elevation changes shown across the sheet are crucial, especially in a landscape governed by bayous, drainage, flooding, and gradual slopes. The result is both technical and evocative: a measured portrait of place in which streets and railways are balanced against the natural logic of land and water.
Houston itself appears as a growing urban center knit together by major routes such as Main Street and Harrisburg Boulevard, along with a dense network of local roads and railways. The map reflects a city deeply tied to movement—of people, agricultural goods, industrial materials, and maritime commerce. Rail lines radiate through and around the city, revealing the infrastructure that helped Houston consolidate its regional importance in the early twentieth century. Houston Harbor is a particularly important feature, pointing to the city’s transformation into a major inland port after the development of the Houston Ship Channel. The map shows an urban landscape still open-ended, with development pressing outward from the core into neighboring settlements and working lands.
The bayous give the map much of its character. Buffalo Bayou, long central to Houston’s history, winds through the mapped landscape as both natural drainage and commercial artery, while Brays Bayou marks another vital thread in the region’s hydrology. These waterways shaped settlement patterns, transportation routes, industrial siting, and the persistent challenge of managing water in a flat coastal plain. Around them, the map distinguishes agricultural fields, forested areas, open spaces, and scattered industrial sites, showing a mosaic of land uses that would later be dramatically altered. The careful topographic treatment makes clear that even modest variations in elevation mattered in this environment, where the relationship between urban growth and flood-prone terrain was already consequential.
As a historical document, the “Settegast” map offers a compelling snapshot of Houston in 1922, before the explosive suburbanization, freeway construction, and petrochemical expansion that would redefine the region. It records a city at the intersection of older rural patterns and modern metropolitan ambition: railways and harbor works alongside fields, bayous, woods, and emerging neighborhoods. Harris County’s later transformation makes the details especially resonant, since many of the open spaces and agricultural lands shown here have since been absorbed into the urban fabric. For collectors of Texas history, urban development, or American topographic mapping, this map captures Houston at a formative stage, poised between bayou town, railroad hub, and global energy metropolis.
Cities, towns and places on this map
- Houston
- Harris County
- Settegast neighborhood
- Houston Harbor
- Brays Bayou
- Buffalo Bayou
- Harrisburg Boulevard
- Main Street
- Various streets and roads
- Various railways
- Agricultural fields
- Forested areas
- Industrial sites
- Parks and open spaces
Historical context & cartographic details
- Historical 1:31,680 topographical map showing Houston, Texas, and the surrounding area in 1922
- Produced by the US Geological Survey (USGS)
- The USGS is known for detailed topographic maps used in planning, engineering, conservation, and related applications
- Prominently features Houston as a significant urban center in Texas, along with surrounding landscapes
- Uses color shading and contour lines to represent elevation and terrain features
- Shows elevation changes and landforms in and around Houston through detailed contouring
- Provides insight into Houston’s land use and urban development in 1922, before major later changes in the region
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 “Settegast” and dated 1922, this US Geological Survey topographical map presents Houston, Texas, and its surrounding Harris County landscape at a revealing moment in the city’s expansion. Drawn at a 1:31,680 scale, it captures both the urban form of Houston and the transitional country beyond it: neighborhoods, roads, rail lines, bayous, fields, wooded tracts, and industrial areas. The title refers to Settegast, a community northeast of central Houston, here situated within a wider geography shaped by transportation corridors and waterways. As a record of Houston before its later metropolitan sprawl, the map offers a finely grained view of the city when its streets, harbor facilities, and outlying agricultural lands still stood in close proximity.
The US Geological Survey’s topographic style gives the map its authority and quiet elegance. Founded in 1879, the USGS became the American standard-bearer for systematic mapping, producing maps used by engineers, planners, conservationists, landowners, and government agencies. Here, the agency’s characteristic use of contour lines and color differentiation translates the low Gulf Coast terrain into legible form. Houston is not a mountainous city, yet the subtle elevation changes shown across the sheet are crucial, especially in a landscape governed by bayous, drainage, flooding, and gradual slopes. The result is both technical and evocative: a measured portrait of place in which streets and railways are balanced against the natural logic of land and water.
Houston itself appears as a growing urban center knit together by major routes such as Main Street and Harrisburg Boulevard, along with a dense network of local roads and railways. The map reflects a city deeply tied to movement—of people, agricultural goods, industrial materials, and maritime commerce. Rail lines radiate through and around the city, revealing the infrastructure that helped Houston consolidate its regional importance in the early twentieth century. Houston Harbor is a particularly important feature, pointing to the city’s transformation into a major inland port after the development of the Houston Ship Channel. The map shows an urban landscape still open-ended, with development pressing outward from the core into neighboring settlements and working lands.
The bayous give the map much of its character. Buffalo Bayou, long central to Houston’s history, winds through the mapped landscape as both natural drainage and commercial artery, while Brays Bayou marks another vital thread in the region’s hydrology. These waterways shaped settlement patterns, transportation routes, industrial siting, and the persistent challenge of managing water in a flat coastal plain. Around them, the map distinguishes agricultural fields, forested areas, open spaces, and scattered industrial sites, showing a mosaic of land uses that would later be dramatically altered. The careful topographic treatment makes clear that even modest variations in elevation mattered in this environment, where the relationship between urban growth and flood-prone terrain was already consequential.
As a historical document, the “Settegast” map offers a compelling snapshot of Houston in 1922, before the explosive suburbanization, freeway construction, and petrochemical expansion that would redefine the region. It records a city at the intersection of older rural patterns and modern metropolitan ambition: railways and harbor works alongside fields, bayous, woods, and emerging neighborhoods. Harris County’s later transformation makes the details especially resonant, since many of the open spaces and agricultural lands shown here have since been absorbed into the urban fabric. For collectors of Texas history, urban development, or American topographic mapping, this map captures Houston at a formative stage, poised between bayou town, railroad hub, and global energy metropolis.
Cities, towns and places on this map
- Houston
- Harris County
- Settegast neighborhood
- Houston Harbor
- Brays Bayou
- Buffalo Bayou
- Harrisburg Boulevard
- Main Street
- Various streets and roads
- Various railways
- Agricultural fields
- Forested areas
- Industrial sites
- Parks and open spaces
Historical context & cartographic details
- Historical 1:31,680 topographical map showing Houston, Texas, and the surrounding area in 1922
- Produced by the US Geological Survey (USGS)
- The USGS is known for detailed topographic maps used in planning, engineering, conservation, and related applications
- Prominently features Houston as a significant urban center in Texas, along with surrounding landscapes
- Uses color shading and contour lines to represent elevation and terrain features
- Shows elevation changes and landforms in and around Houston through detailed contouring
- Provides insight into Houston’s land use and urban development in 1922, before major later changes in the region
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.
We work with interior designers, hospitality businesses, property professionals, offices and corporate buyers on individual pieces and larger coordinated projects.
This map can be adapted for a particular wall, room or project, and our workshop can help coordinate the dimensions, material and framing before production.
- Exact, oversized and made-to-measure dimensions
- Custom framing, mounting and alternative materials
- Coordinated pieces for several rooms or locations
- Map personalisation, to mark important locations or add extra details
- Map and framing guidance from our workshop
- Local production for projects around the world
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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