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1952 Map of Eldorado Bend

Name: 1952 Topographic Map of Eldorado Bend
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1968
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1968

About this map

The Sacramento River meanders through this agricultural landscape at the junction of Yolo, Sutter, and Colusa counties, defining the boundary at Eldorado Bend and Missouri Bend. This early 1950s survey captures a complex water-management network essential to the Central Valley, dominated by the Colusa Basin Drainage Canal, Sycamore Slough, and the West Side Canal. These features highlight the era's intensive reclamation efforts within the Colusa Basin to support large-scale ranching and farming operations like State Ranch Bend.

Transportation and small-scale settlement are concentrated in the southwest, where the Southern Pacific railroad cuts a straight line toward the Dunnigan Hills. The map records localized historical markers including the small stop at Dufour and the isolated Marys Cemetery, providing a specific record of the rural population and infrastructure before modern expansion. Numerous pumps and windmills scattered across the grid indicate the reliance on groundwater in this river-bottom territory.