a. Reduced Scale. Because of the reduced scale, it is impossible to show the buildings and populated places on medium-and small-scale maps in great detail. Consequently, the symbols are truly symbolic or representative. The only buildings shown are those which serve as outstanding landmarks in isolated areas.
b. Populated Places. A small populated place is shown by a small circle. A larger populated place is shown, generally true to shape, by an outlined and tinted area. Within the outline, the only features usually shown are the mainline railroads and through-route roads. On 1:250,000 scale maps, the tint is usually shown in yellow; on small-scale maps, it is shown in red.
c. Use of Tinted Squares. In many areas, there is insufficient information available to plot the correct outlines of populated places. In such cases, tinted squares of varying sizes are used as symbols, with the size depending upon the population or importance. Explanation of these squares is contained in the marginal legend of the map.
d. Names of Populated Places. The names of populated places are shown in type of varying size, with the size depending upon population or importance. When information is available, the marginal legend shows the different sizes keyed to a population breakdown. When information is not available, the sizes are keyed to an important breakdown.
e. Symbols. The following contain the approved symbols for buildings and populated places on medium-and small-scale maps.
