1970 Map of Colter Draw

About this map

Williams Shearing Pens and the Old Kelly Place anchor this 1970 landscape in the high plains of Converse County. The map reveals a ranching and resource-extraction economy, marked by isolated outposts and a Drill Hole alongside the Downs Ranch. The drainage pattern is complex, defined by seasonal watercourses like Horse Creek, Bobcat Creek, and the namesake Colter Draw. This survey captures a specific era of land use where fine red dashed fence lines crisscross the territory, indicating property divisions and grazing management during the late twentieth century. It is a sparsely populated area where survival and industry depend heavily on the proximity to water sources such as Deer Creek and Little Rat Creek.