1971 Map of Gila Butte SE

About this map

The Gila River provides a sharp northern boundary to this Pinal County landscape, which transitions from irrigated agricultural grids into the high desert relief of the Sacaton Mountains. This 1971 orthophotomap uses aerial photography to capture the visual textures of the era, revealing the stark contrast between the darkened, water-rich squares of the northern farm tracts and the light-colored, alluvial fans of the southern mountains. The geometric precision of the irrigation network and the long, diagonal infrastructure cuts through the desert floor illustrate the scale of mid-century water management in the Arizona desert. These photogrammetric surveys are particularly valuable for documenting the exact footprint of desert reclamation and agricultural development before further modernization or suburban expansion altered the local topography.