1951 Map of Elmira

About this map

Pend Oreille Lake dominates the southern landscape of this 1950s survey, showing the shoreline just as the Albeni Falls Dam project was poised to submerge sections of the coast, marked here by blue hatching. The area's educational history is frozen in time, with several rural schoolhouses already noted as abandoned, including the Grouse Creek (Aban'd) Sch and Center Valley Sch (Aban'd). The transportation network is defined by the Great Northern and Spokane International railroads, which parallel the highway through settlements like Elmira and Samuels. Further east, the rugged peaks of the Kaniksu National Forest rise sharply, including Elmira Peak and Wylie Knob. This map records a transition in the Pack River valley, where the rural economy was shifting from timber and small-scale rail sidings like Forest Siding toward the modern landscape shaped by hydroelectric development and forest management.