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1951 Map of Alvord Mountain

Name: 1951 Topographic Map of Alvord Mountain
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1951
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1951

About this map

Alvord Mountain dominates this portion of the High Desert, serving as the central topographical anchor between the northern military grounds and southern transit corridors. In the early Cold War era, the Camp Irwin Military Reservation occupied the northern half of this landscape, its boundary lines clearly marked as they cut through the arid terrain. Survival in this environment depended on scattered water sources such as Garlic Spring, Jack Rabbit Spring, and Alvord Well, which supported both early ranching and mining activities.

Industrial interests are centered around the Alvord Mine on the mountain's southern slopes, while a Loading Corral further west points to the area's history of livestock management. To the south, the Union Pacific railroad provides a heavy-duty transport link across the desert floor, skirting the edge of the expansive Coyote Lake playa. This 1948 survey, published in 1951, captures a period when private roads and remote wells still defined movement outside the expanding military perimeter.