1970 Map of Empire

About this map

Coos Bay dominates this coastal survey, where the bay's waters separate the industrial and residential centers of North Bend and Empire from the shifting terrain of the North Spit. In the early 1970s, the landscape reflects a complex mix of education and industry, anchored by the campus of Southwestern Oregon Community College and a prominent Municipal Airport near the bay's edge. To the west, the Pacific Ocean meets a wide beach backed by the Sand Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area and the Siuslaw National Forest. The map captures specific land-use patterns of the era, from the inland Horsfall Lake and Bluebill Lake to the developed sections of Coos Bay proper, including landmarks like Radar Hill and several local sloughs like Pony Slough and Joe Ney Slough.