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1978 Map of Buck Canyon

Name: 1978 Topographic Map of Buck Canyon
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1979
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1979

About this map

Mustang Creek and its many tributaries, including Little Mustang Creek, carve a complex network of canyons across this corner of Las Animas County during the late 1970s. The landscape is defined by the dramatic relief of Buck Canyon and Brown Canyon, which drain northward toward the winding course of Butte Creek. This terrain reflects a rural ranching economy where water sources like Spring Creek and various isolated Wells were critical for survival and land management.

Evidence of established rural communities appears in the form of local institutions like the Cottonwood School and Bunker Hill School, which once served the surrounding prairie. Transportation and commerce are anchored by the presence of the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe railroad line passing through the southeastern corner. This survey also records a solitary Grave located along the ridges above the Mustang Creek drainage, providing a poignant data point for local genealogists and historians.