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1957 Map of Goodland

Name: 1957 Topographic Map of Goodland
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1957
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1957

About this map

Sherman County and the high plains of Northwest Kansas are defined by a rhythmic drainage pattern of eastward-flowing rivers in this mid-century survey. The landscape is carved by the South Fork Republican River, Beaver Creek, and the Sappa Creek system, creating parallel valleys that dictated the placement of early settlements. Major rail corridors, including the Union Pacific and the Chicago Rock Island and Pacific, follow these natural contours, connecting grain hubs like Goodland, Colby, and Oakley.

The map reveals the agricultural infrastructure of the 1950s, specifically noting a radio tower and multiple grain elevators that served as the economic anchors for towns like St Francis and Atwood. From the Nebraska border down to the Smoky Hill River, the grid of county lines—including Rawlins, Thomas, and Decatur—overlies a network of U.S. Highways that by this era had become the primary arteries for the region’s transit and trade.