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1959 Map of Anderson Island

Name: 1959 Topographic Map of Anderson Island
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1968
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1968

About this map

Fort Lewis Military Reservation and the sprawling Mcchord Air Force Base dominate the landscape south of Tacoma in the late 1950s. This survey illustrates a region defined by massive federal and state institutional footprints, from the Federal Penitentiary on McNeil Island to the State Hospital near Steilacoom Lake. The residential growth of the era is evident in the emerging suburban grids of University Place, Fircrest, and Lakewood Center, which contrast sharply with the undeveloped Nisqually Flats.

Waterborne transit and maritime geography are central to the area's character, with Carr Inlet and Puget Sound separating the mainland from Anderson Island and Fox Island. The complex network of passages, including Pitt Passage and Drayton Passage, highlights the importance of the Sound for both military logistics and local navigation. Farther south, the Nisqually River and Muck Creek wind through the artillery ranges and training grounds of the military reservation toward the town of Roy.