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2017 Map of Culbertson SW

Name: 2017 Topographic Map of Culbertson SW
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 2017
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 2017

About this map

Driftwood Creek and its numerous tributaries dominate this high plains landscape at the border of Nebraska and Kansas. The terrain is deeply incised by a network of drainages including the N Fork Driftwood Creek and S Fork Driftwood Creek, which have carved distinctive geological features like Big Canyon and Thompson Canyon. This network of draws and ridges reflects the traditional dryland drainage patterns of the region, where water availability dictated the placement of roads and homesteads.

Genealogists and local historians can locate the Cornell Cemetery along the southern border of the map, a quiet marker of the early families who settled this rugged corner of Rawlins County. The map provides a detailed view of the section line road system, including RD 707 and RD 705, which cross the divide between the Willow Creek drainage and the Driftwood system, illustrating the persistence of the Public Land Survey System grid in the Western American landscape.