1972 Map of California Creek

About this map

Amistad Reservoir dominates this high-desert landscape in Val Verde County, its sprawling blue fingers reaching deep into the winding canyons carved by Evans Creek and California Creek. Surveyed just a few years after the completion of the Amistad Dam, the map shows the reservoir at its operating level of 1117 feet, defining the modern shoreline of the Amistad National Recreation Area. The infrastructure of the West Texas frontier is visible in the transit lines of the Southern Pacific railroad and a nearby Old Railroad Grade, which trace the higher ground above the newly formed lake. A remote Landing Strip and a Gaging Sta near the creek confluence underscore the transition of this arid terrain from a rugged ranching corridor to a federally managed water and recreation resource in the early 1970s.