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1952 Map of Anvil Points

Name: 1952 Topographic Map of Anvil Points
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1955
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1955

About this map

The Naval Oil Shale Reserve dominates this 1952 topographic study, showcasing the strategic industrial development of the Roan Plateau during the early Cold War era. At the heart of the landscape is the Bureau of Mines Oil Shale Experiment Station, accompanied by a Tank Farm and the Anvil Points Oil Shale Mines. These facilities, carved into the dramatic verticality of the Roan Cliffs, illustrate the mid-century effort to extract fuel from the region's geological formations.

Industrial infrastructure is interspersed with utilitarian outposts like a Weather Station, a Pump House, and Glover Park. To the south, the valley floor transitions into the agricultural and transit corridor of Sharrard Park, where the D & R G W railroad and the Webster Ditch follow the terrain. The presence of the Rulison Oil Shale Mine (Inactive) near Cottonwood Point highlights the shifting nature of resource extraction as new technologies emerged along the cliffs of West Anvil Point.