1944 Map of Auburn

About this map

Auburn serves as the focal point for this mid-century look at the foothills where the Southern Pacific railroad snakes through the Placer County landscape. The map captures a transition period in California’s interior, documenting numerous rural education centers like the Japanese Sch and Union Grammar Sch alongside the early aviation infrastructure of several Airway Beacons. To the south, the village of Salmon Falls sits near the confluence of the American River and Sweetwater Creek, long before later water projects altered the river's path. Traces of the region's mining and ranching history are evident in the naming of Dutch Ravine, Whisky Bar, and Kilaga Springs. The map also preserves the complex geography of the American River's canyon, including the location of Rattlesnake Bridge and the rugged divide between Placer and El Dorado counties.