1917 Map of Antelope Wells

About this map

Scattered ranching outposts and vital water sources define this remote border landscape in New Mexico as it was surveyed just before the end of the First World War. The terrain is dominated by the San Luis Mountains and the Whitewater Mts, where survival depended on a network of family-run operations such as Culberson's Ranch, W T Sims Ranch, and W E Bass Ranch. The presence of High Lonesome Wells and Antelope Wells highlights the critical importance of groundwater in this arid environment along the United States Mexico boundary. This 1917 survey captures a rugged frontier economy where Packers Trail and Nations Tanks served as essential infrastructure for movement and livestock, long before modern development altered the southwestern landscape.