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1967 Map of Cooley Lake

Name: 1967 Topographic Map of Cooley Lake
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1982
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1982

About this map

McDowell Ranch and Good Ranch anchor this landscape along the boundary of De Baca and Chaves Counties, representing the mid-century ranching heritage of east-central New Mexico. The terrain is defined by low-lying basins and ephemeral water sources, most notably the wide corridor of White Draw which traverses the lower half of the quadrangle. Surface water is scarce and localized, found at Urton Lake, Cooley Lake, and Salt Lake.

Strategic water management is evident through a network of family-named and directional landmarks, including Howells Windmill, North Spy Windmill, and Middle Spy Windmill. These features, along with North Tank, provided the essential infrastructure for livestock in a region where the fine red dashed lines indicate extensive fence systems across the open range. The presence of SEA Camp in the northwest suggests specialized land use during this period of the late 1960s and early 1980s.