1952 Map of Cactus Spring

About this map

The Las Vegas Bombing and Gunnery Range dominates the high desert terrain of central Nye County, where military operations overlay a landscape of earlier prospectors. This 1952 survey documents the transition from mining frontiers to Cold War military infrastructure, featuring scattered target markers and Bunkers alongside the remnants of the silver and gold era. The Cactus Range rises sharply above the broad expanse of Stonewall Flat, sheltering the critical water source at Cactus Spring. Evidence of early 20th-century industry is visible at the Urania Mine and the Gold Crater (Site), where a cluster of labeled Mining Area annotations and Ruins mark the locations of former camps. This map serves as a vital record for those tracing the footprints of remote Nevada mining sites that were absorbed into restricted government zones.