1955 Map of Crescent

About this map

Silver Lake and the high desert outposts of Central Oregon define this mid-century landscape at a time when timber and high-altitude ranching dominated the local economy. The western half of the sheet is dominated by the dense timberlands of the Deschutes National Forest and Fremont National Forest, dotted with prominent volcanic features like Bachelor Butte and Lava Butte. This area serves as a critical water source, shown through the network of the Crane Prairie Reservoir, Wickiup Reservoir, and Odell Lake. Moving eastward, the terrain opens into the expansive Christmas Lake Valley, where the transition from forest to desert is marked by isolated settlements such as Stauffer and Brothers. Transportation through these remote corridors relied heavily on the Southern Pacific and Great Northern railroads, which parallel the modern path of Highway 97, connecting timber towns like Gilchrist and Crescent to broader markets.