Loading map...

1982 Map of Fitzpatricks

Name: 1982 Topographic Map of Fitzpatricks
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1982
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1982

About this map

Fitzpatricks anchors this high-desert landscape in southwestern Hidalgo County, where the desert floor meets the rising peaks of the Animas Mountains. The topography is dominated by the Continental Divide, which snakes along the ridgeline between the Animas and San Luis Mountains. Water management is the primary evidence of human industry across this arid terrain, shown by an extensive network of named stock ponds and tanks including Schoolhouse Tank, Mailbox Tank, Tumblinson Tank, and Juniper Tank.

A remote Airstrip and several private roads cut through the basins, providing access to isolated points like Red Hill and the riparian area of Birch Creek near Birch Spring. This 1982 provisional survey illustrates the ranching infrastructure required to sustain life in the Bootheel of New Mexico, capturing a specific period of land use before modern technological shifts in rural water and transportation management.