1940 Map of Carlsbad Caverns West

About this map

Queen Cem and the small settlement of Queen anchor the high country in this 1940 survey of the Guadalupe Mountains. The landscape is defined by a complex network of deep drainages including Slaughter Canyon, Dark Canyon, and Lechuguilla Canyon, which cut through the limestone toward the Black River. This period of land use is heavily marked by scattered ranching outposts such as Montgomery Ranch, Schermer Ranch, and McCollum Ranch, each situated near critical water sources like Pats Lake or Sitting Bull Spring. The map documents the early recreational and administrative footprint of the region, featuring the Sitting Bull Recreational Area at Sitting Bull Falls and the Carson Seep Ranger Sta, providing a detailed look at the rural infrastructure of the New Mexico-Texas borderlands before later development.