Titled “Eustis,” this US Geological Survey topographical map was created in 1966 and published in 1968, preserving a finely measured portrait of central Florida at a moment of transition. Drawn at the detailed 1:24,000 scale, it centers on the lake country around Eustis and Mount Dora, where water, settlement, roadways, and modest elevations define the landscape. Lake Eustis and Lake Dora dominate the composition, joined by neighboring waters such as Lake Harris, Lake Beauclaire, Lake Gertrude, and Lake Carlton. The map captures a region shaped not by dramatic mountains, but by subtle changes in elevation, shorelines, wetlands, and expanding communities—an especially revealing view of Lake County before later waves of suburban growth further transformed the area.

The USGS style gives the map its enduring authority: clean lettering, carefully differentiated colors, and a disciplined symbolic language that makes the landscape immediately legible. Water bodies appear as the organizing feature of the region, while roads, railroads, trails, urban blocks, and rural tracts are arranged with the clarity characteristic of mid-century federal cartography. Contour lines trace the area’s gentle rises and depressions, showing the elevated ground around Mount Dora and the lower terrain surrounding the lakes. This restrained design was not decorative excess, but practical elegance—mapping intended for engineers, planners, hikers, conservationists, and citizens who needed dependable knowledge of the land beneath their feet.

Mount Dora is one of the map’s most compelling features, a town long associated with lakefront leisure, citrus-era prosperity, and a distinct hilltop character unusual in much of peninsular Florida. Its relationship to Lake Dora is especially important: the lake provided scenery, recreation, transportation associations, and a natural focal point for development. Nearby Eustis, set beside Lake Eustis, appears as another anchor of settlement within this interconnected chain of lakes. The map reveals how these towns were woven together by roads, rail corridors, shoreline access, and open land, offering a snapshot of communities poised between their older agricultural and resort identities and the accelerating growth of modern central Florida.

The broader landscape shown here is a study in Florida’s inland water geography. Lake Ola, Lake Vause, Lake Lewis, Lake Emma, Lake Carlton, Lake Harris, and Lake Beauclaire form a constellation of freshwater basins, each shaping patterns of habitation, recreation, drainage, and local movement. Rather than presenting a single urban center, the map depicts a mosaic of lakeside towns, rural parcels, wooded or undeveloped zones, and unnamed neighborhoods. Trails and secondary roads hint at everyday routes through groves, pastures, and residential enclaves, while railroads speak to earlier economic networks. The result is a richly layered document of land use, where natural systems and human infrastructure meet at every shoreline.

As a historical artifact, “Eustis” is particularly evocative because it records the area just before the late twentieth century brought intensified development to the Mount Dora–Eustis corridor and the greater Orlando hinterland. Places such as Apopka, Longwood, and Hawthorne situate the map within a wider regional geography, connecting Lake County’s quieter lake country to the expanding urban and recreational landscape of central Florida. The map’s value lies not only in its precision, but in its timing: it preserves the roads, rail lines, lakefronts, and settlement patterns of the 1960s with official clarity. For collectors, it is a beautifully ordered window into a Florida defined by water, elevation, and growth on the horizon.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Mount Dora
• Eustis
• Lake Dora
• Lake Eustis
• Lake Harris
• Lake Carlton
• Lake Vause
• Lake Ola
• Lake Gertrude
• Lake Lewis
• Lake Emma
• Lake Beauclaire
• Longwood
• Hawthorne
• Apopka
• Several unnamed regions, including parks, forests, and neighborhoods
• Major roads and highways
• Railroads
• Various trails depicted across the area

Historical context & cartographic details

• Map title: Eustis
• Produced by the US Geological Survey (USGS)
• Created in 1966 and published in 1968
• Historical 1:24,000 topographical map based on survey data
• Reflects mid-20th-century development in central Florida
• USGS maps are known for reliable topographical surveying and geological detail
• Straightforward, informative design characteristic of USGS cartography
• Uses clear symbols and colors to distinguish urban, rural, and aquatic areas
• Highlights elevation changes, water bodies, roads, railways, and urban development
• Shows varied topography, including lakes, elevated areas, and settled regions
• Documents changes in land use, recreation, and urban growth since the 1960s

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.