Wisconsin Department of Transportation releases online highway map going back 100 years

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The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT)  Wednesday released an online archive of Wisconsin’s Official State Highway Map over the past century. The state printed its first edition highway map in 1918 and both residents and visitors refer to highway maps to reach their destinations or explore the state.

It’s one of the state’s free resources and now archives of a hundred years of road maps is available on the WisDOT website. The next edition of the map will be published in Summer of 2023, agency officials said.

Many notable changes including how the main road from Madison to Milwaukee was once U.S. 18, before I-94 construction. The main road between Green Bay and Milwaukee was once U.S. 141 before I-43 was built. In more recent years, U.S. 41 was upgraded to interstate standards in the Fox Valley and U.S. 51 became interstate 39 in the not so distance past.

WisDOT Secretary Craig Thompson said the online archive will be an opportunity for residents and visitors to look back through time and see changes to the state transportation infrastructure.

“We are excited to share this online archive as a time capsule of Wisconsin’s state highway maps from the past century. We hope Wisconsinites, visitors and history enthusiasts enjoy this fun opportunity to look back through time and explore the changes to our transportation infrastructure,” Thompson said in a statement.

The state sold the first few map publications for 10 cents a copy in the 1920s as a guide of the state trunk network, agency officials said. In the 1930s, maps were distributed to the public for free with emphasis on road safety.

Maps played a role in travel promotion and tourism pointing residents and visitors to Wisconsin amenities, officials said. Tourism promotion included catchy themes and slogans, governor’s welcome messages, photos and engaging advertisements, officials added.

WisDOT and the Wisconsin Department of Tourism developed Wednesday’s highway map data and creative content, officials added.

State law requires Wisconsin’s Official State Highway Map to be distributed free to the public. Even though more people are relying on GPS and other electronic means to find their way, WisDOT officials said demand for the latest version of the 100-year-old paper map remains high. People can find maps through the Wisconsin Department of Tourism, visitor centers, rest areas, gas stations and other businesses across the state.