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Bridges, Tunnels, & Ferries

  • Dec 11, 2020
  • 2 min read

Automobiles do just fine on dry land, but rivers and lakes pose a problem. It's usually not convenient for cars to go around them, and they can't easily ford them like cowboys on a cattle drive. The solution? Mankind's creative genius and engineering muscle fashioned ways for motorists to get over, under and through the water. And today the maps of America's bridges, tunnels and ferries have become popular collectibles.


A few of the bridges and tunnels in use today pre-date the automobile, but most were built to handle the increasing volume of automobile traffic as our country grew and prospered.


These maps are fascinating windows into the recent past. They are a blend of transportation history and local geography -- with a nod to commerce, because like many maps, these were basically advertisements for facilities whose revenue depended on usage. There may be fewer ferries operating today than in the past years, as the economic efficiencies of bridges and tunnels replace them, but the maps pictured with this post give a flavor for the interesting variety of these paper collectibles. This is actually a representative sampling; there are many more that could have been included. You can find dozens of other examples in our vast collection for sale in our online store. My apologies to any whose favorite bridges, tunnels or ferries have been left out.



  • Vintage fold-out 1941 road map brochure of the eastern United States, from Vermont to Florida, published by the Delaware-New Jersey Ferry Company of Wilmington, more than 76 years ago.
    NEW CASTLE-PENNSVILLE FERRY
  • Colorful fold-out 1963 map brochure promoting the Thousand Islands Bridge linking the United States and Canada.
    THOUSAND ISLANDS BRIDGE
  • Original 1941 road map of routes to the Chester-Bridgeport Ferry across the Delaware River, printed more than 75 years ago.
    1941 CHESTER-BRIDGEPORT FERRY
  • Vintage 1933 fold-out map promoting travel across the Lake Champlain Bridge connecting Crown Point, New York and Chimney Point, Vermont, printed more than 84 years ago.
    1933 Road Map Lk Champlain Bdg
  • Handsome, stiff-cover edition of "Sunset Travel Guide to Washington," with a full-color photograph of the "M.V. Elwha" on the front cover.
    1978 Illustrated Travel Guide
  • Handsome large-format fold-out 1986 official highway road map of Texas, printed more than 34 years ago.
    1986 Pennybacker Bridge
  • Handsome fold-out 1954 road map of the New York City metropolitan area, published by the Port of New York Authority more than 65 years ago.
    Map Bridges Tunnels Ferries
  • Handsome fold-out 1942 Esso Colonial Beacon road map of the metropolitan New York City area, printed more than 75 years ago.
    Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel
  • Fold-out Cape May-Lewes Ferry photo brochure, sailing schedule, and road map, printed more than 40 years ago.
    1970 CAPE MAY-LEWES FERRY
  • Handsome fold-out Esso road map of New York City and Long Island, printed more than 50 years ago.
    Manhattan Long IslandVerrazano
  • Handsome fold-out road map of New Jersey, Delaware, and parts of Maryland and Pennsylvania, promoting use of the Delaware Memorial Bridge and the Cape May-Lewes Ferry and printed more than 47 years ago.
    DELAWARE MEMORIAL BRIDGE
  • Handsome fold-out 1954 Amoco road map of Florida, printed more than 65 years ago.
    FLORIDA Cuba Ferry
  • Original fold-out Washington State Ferries 1953 summer schedules and map, printed more than 64 years ago.
    1953 Washington State Ferries
  • Official 1953 fold-out road map of approaches to the Burlington-Bristol Bridge, printed more than 64 years ago.
    BURLINGTON-BRISTOL BRIDGE
  • Large-format fold-out 1949 guide to city attractions and the facilities of the New York Port Authority, printed more than 70 years ago.
    New York City Travel Guide

And many other maps, besides these promotional ones, depict bridges and tunnels. I even have a 1930s map of Wilmington, Delaware, which shows a tunnel to New Jersey -- a tunnel that was never built.


For lovers of maps in all their wonderful variety, I recommend membership in the Road Maps Collectors Association.


You are always welcome to contact us via our contact page about any aspect of map collecting... or to let me know about any bridge, tunnel or ferry maps you may have in your collection.




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