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1972 Map of Bentsen Ranch

Name: 1972 Topographic Map of Bentsen Ranch
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1993
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1993

About this map

The Starr Co Hidalgo Co line cuts through this South Texas landscape, where the extraction economy and ranching culture define the terrain. The presence of the Oil and Gas Field and the more specific Hinde Oil Field shows a region deeply committed to energy production in the early 1970s, evidenced by numerous Drill Holes and Oil Wells scattered throughout.

Settlement patterns are anchored by named windmills and ranches, which serve as essential landmarks in this arid environment. Central to the map is Bentsen Ranch, accompanied by a nearby Landing Field, suggesting the scale of operations and the necessity of aerial access. Other named family landmarks like Papalote Balderones Windmill and Loraleno Windmill provide specific touchpoints for local historians and genealogists researching the families who managed this territory. The terrain, marked by the label El Benadito, remains largely open, navigated by a network of pipelines and unimproved roads.