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The Map Inside: Connecticut Officials: 1998

This exhibit shows how the Connecticut official tourist map has changed since the 1930s. You can start with the introduction or browse year to year. The scans may not be actual size (150 dpi), but are consistent with each other.

Other years:
1930 1934 1935 1938 1941 1942 1943 1949 1952 1955 1956 1957 1959
1960 1961 1963 1965 1971 1972 1975 1989 1998 2000 2001 2002

1998 map excerpt

The 1998 map is the first one to be obviously computer-generated, enabling such advances as three-color interstate shields. Non-state roads are thin red lines, making the map look a bit bloodshot; state roads (even secret ones) are still made distinctly thicker.

I don't like the new look (it's a bit noisy) but it's not that bad. We see some problems with one kind of metadata overwriting another (such as "Flanders Village" over US 1). The changes at the state level are nowhere near as abject as the abandonment of good city detail (right).

1998 map excerpt

The city insets did not survive the transition as well as the main map. A lot of detail has been lost compared to earlier maps.

No grade separations are shown; everything's been flattened. The ramps are scattered indifferent line segments that give you no hint as to what access the interchanges provide. I-91 and the Whitehead Highway seem not to have any ramps in Hartford.

Please compare with the 1975 city inset to see what has been lost. (Fortunately, inset quality was improved in the 2000 map.)