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1923 Map of Elkhead Creek

Name: 1923 Topographic Map of Elkhead Creek
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1966
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1966

About this map

Routt National Forest dominates the northern reaches of this Colorado landscape, where Slide Mtn and Pinnacle Mtn overlook a network of high-country drainages. The 1923 survey reveals a decentralized rural society defined by its cattle and coal interests, with a notable concentration of educational sites like Dry Fork School and Long Gulch School serving scattered homesteads. Industrial activity is clustered near Cedar Hill Gulch, where the Bridges Mine, Seymour Mine, and Star Mine signal the era's mineral development.

Along the southern edge, the Yampa River corridor provides a lower-elevation contrast, navigated by the Denver and Salt Lake River railroad line. Settlement remains sparse, concentrated around points like Mesa Rica and various stream crossings such as Daniels Bridge and Dowden Bridge. This record captures the transition between the high forest preserves and the river-fed valleys before mid-century modernizations altered the local infrastructure.