Old Pictorial Map of Puget Sound & NW Washington by Ed Poland, 1944: Seattle, Tacoma, Bellevue, Everett, Mt Rainier

The Evergreen Playground, published in 1944 by the Kroll Map Company, is an exuberant pictorial celebration of Puget Sound and northwestern Washington. Conceived to entice travelers and bolster local business, it distills the region’s drama—from the tide-scored inlets of the Sound to the snow-bright summit of Mount Rainier and the hydroelectric promise of Alder Dam—into a single, irresistible panorama. A decorative border threaded with totem-pole motifs frames the scene, while a mermaid-shaped compass rose, poised before a glowing Pacific sunset, sets the romantic tone. Seattle and Bellingham anchor the urban narrative, answered across the water by the Olympic Peninsula’s proud outposts of Port Townsend and Port Angeles. The result is at once a map and a manifesto: an invitation to discover Washington’s evergreen theatre of nature and enterprise. At the heart of this vision stands Ed Poland, the Kroll Map Company’s long-time cartographer whose draughtsmanship lends the work its personality. Poland’s line is assured and expressive: mountains scalloped with shadow, forests stippled into velvety mass, shorelines nipped and tucked with a painter’s economy. He balances whimsy with legibility, choreographing lively vignettes without sacrificing geographic clarity. The title cartouche blooms with period elegance, and the legend is woven into the artwork rather than appended—hallmarks of 1940s pictorial design. The mermaid compass rose, simultaneously playful and precise, orients the viewer while echoing the maritime pulse of the Sound. Poland’s artful lettering, varied but consistent, guides the eye from feature to feature, transforming a practical guide into a living portrait of a place in motion. Geographically, the map is a love letter to the intricate waterways that knit the region together. The Puget Sound is rendered in shimmering detail, its coves, capes, and channels animated with ferries and fishing craft, while coastal towns take recognizable form through emblematic buildings and waterfronts. To the south and east, the Cascade Mountains rise in crisp relief, their serried ridgelines marching toward Mount Rainier’s commanding profile. Tacoma unfurls along Commencement Bay; Everett and Bellingham punctuate the northern crescent; Olympia presides from the state’s southern reach; and Bellevue’s lakeside growth is acknowledged opposite Seattle’s bustling core. On the Olympic Peninsula, Port Townsend’s Victorian charms and Port Angeles’s working harbor orient the viewer to the Strait. Rivers coursing from the Cascades and the notation of Alder Dam underscore the region’s harnessed energy. Transportation is the map’s triumphant refrain. Highways sweep across valleys in confident bands; railroads stitch the lowlands and skirt the shore; water routes lace blue corridors through the islands; and feathered flight-lines announce air-service connections arcing to international destinations. Poland spotlights the region’s engineering audacity with floating bridges—most notably the east–west span later designated I-90 and the route that would become I-520—bridging freshwater expanses with improbable grace. Ferry routes flutter from terminal to terminal, binding city and sound in a daily ballet. Ports are animated by freighters and tugs; depots and roundhouses punctuate the rails. Around the border, playful motifs of outdoor recreation and commercial enterprise—hiking boots, salmon, sawlogs, and shipwright’s tools—affirm that movement here is both livelihood and leisure, the very rhythm of the Evergreen Playground. Context deepens the charm. Born of Depression-era boosterism and carried into wartime publication, The Evergreen Playground radiates optimism: a promise that Washington’s forests, mountains, and saltwater avenues would sustain prosperity and delight. Its pictorial language works as marketing and memory, wrapping civic pride and natural grandeur into a single, legible tapestry. The decorative border teases out the pleasures on offer, from alpine rambles in the Cascades to breezy excursions along the Sound, while the map’s careful naming and scene-setting keep it grounded in use. Today it reads as both guide and time capsule, capturing the moment when a confident Northwest showcased its beauty, infrastructure, and outward gaze—and invited the traveler to step into a landscape where every road, rail, wake, and contrail leads to discovery. Cities and towns on this map Seattle (population: ~750,000) Tacoma (population: ~220,000) Bellevue (population: ~150,000) Everett (population: ~110,000) Bellingham (population: ~90,000) Olympia (population: ~52,000) Port Angeles (population: ~20,000) Port Townsend (population: ~9,000) Shelton (population: ~10,000) Hoquiam (population: ~8,000) Wenatchee (population: ~34,000) Mount Vernon (population: ~35,000) The map features a number of smaller settlements and notable landmarks but focuses prominently on the larger urban areas mentioned above. Notable Features & Landmarks Detailed pictorial rendering of the Puget Sound. Individual depictions of towns and cities with characteristic buildings. Floating bridges (I-90 and I-520) illustrated as major transportation features. Decorative title cartouche for the map's name and legend. A compass rose in the form of a mermaid, demonstrated below a stylized sunset. Iconic representations of recreational activities and commercial enterprises in the surrounding border. An emphasis on the Cascade Mountains, depicted in great detail. Historical and design context Title: The Evergreen Playground Creator: Kroll Map Company Year Created: 1944 Cartographer: Ed Poland, a long-time cartographer with Kroll Map Company, known for his artistic skills. Theme: Pictorial map promoting tourism, depicting the natural beauty and transportation facilities of the Puget Sound and Northwestern Washington. Artwork Style: The map features a decorative border with totem pole motifs and a mermaid compass rose situated in a colorful Pacific scene. Such ornate cartouches reflect a stylized approach typical of 1940s pictorial maps. Transportation Highlight: Emphasizes transportation facilities, including highways, railroads, water routes, and air service connections to various international destinations. Significance: Created during the Great Depression as part of an effort to promote tourism and local business in Washington State. Please double check the images to make sure that a specific town or place is shown on this map. You can also get in touch and ask us to check the map for you.This map looks great at every size, but I always recommend going for a larger size if you have space. That way you can easily make out all of the details. This map looks amazing at sizes all the way up to 100in (250cm). If you are looking for a larger map, please get in touch. Please note: the labels on this map are hard to read if you order a map that is 16in (40cm) or smaller. The map is still very attractive, but if you would like to read the map easily, please buy a larger size. The model in the listing images is holding the 36x24in (90x60cm) version of this map.The fifth listing image shows an example of my map personalisation service.If you’re looking for something slightly different, check out my collection of the best old maps to see if something else catches your eye.Please contact me to check if a certain location, landmark or feature is shown on this map.This would make a wonderful birthday, Christmas, Father's Day, work leaving, anniversary or housewarming gift for someone from the areas covered by this map.This map is available as a giclée print on acid free archival matte paper, or you can buy it framed. The frame is a nice, simple black frame that suits most aesthetics. Please get in touch if you'd like a different frame colour or material. My frames are glazed with super-clear museum-grade acrylic (perspex/acrylite), which is significantly less reflective than glass, safer, and will always arrive in perfect condition.