1996 Map of Elgin

About this map

Las Cienegas National Conservation Area anchors this landscape of the High Desert at the turn of the millennium, straddling the boundary between Pima Co and Santa Cruz Co. The small settlement of Elgin is situated at the junction of several drainage systems, including the Babocomari River and Cienega Creek. This map preserves the footprint of earlier infrastructure through the Old Railroad Grade, which once connected these cattle-ranching grasslands to larger markets. Cultural history is concentrated near the townsite, where researchers can find the Fruitland Cemetery and an additional unnamed Cemetery further east. The topography rises sharply into the Mustang Mts and descends into deep seasonal drainages such as San Ignacio Del Babocomari Canyon and Vaughn Canyon, illustrating the varied terrain of the Arizona grasslands before significant modern development.