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1894 Map of Bernal

Name: 1894 Topographic Map of Bernal
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1899
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1899

About this map

San Miguel and the high plains of the Pecos Valley appear here as they were during the late nineteenth-century rail expansion. The Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad cuts through the northern landscape, establishing vital connections at San Miguel Station and near the settlement of Bernal. The map reveals a transition in settlement patterns, capturing both the traditional plazas along the river and newer railroad-oriented locations, exemplified by the distinction between Old Bernal and its newer counterpart.

Water and topography dictate the placement of communities like Anton Chico and Upper Anton Chico, which sit along the winding course of the Rio Pecos. To the south and east, the terrain becomes increasingly defined by massive landforms such as Mesa Agua Segura and Canyon Blanco. This survey, conducted under the direction of A. H. Thompson, provides a clear view of the ranching and transit corridors that shaped this part of the territory before statehood.