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1915 Map of Grass Creek Basin

Name: 1915 Topographic Map of Grass Creek Basin
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1915
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1915

About this map

Grass Creek Basin is defined by a remote landscape of high ridges and grazing land just before the First World War. Surveyed by R.B. Marshall and a team of geographers, the map reveals a network of homesteads and water sources essential to the region's early cattle industry. Notable family holdings such as Dickie Ranch, Mayfield's Ranch, and Wales Ranch are interspersed between landmarks like Legend Rock and the extensive Wagonhound Bench.

The presence of the Putney Mine near the southern border and Coalmine Draw further north suggests the early extraction of resources during this era of settlement. Water management is evident through the Wales Reservoir and the naming of numerous seasonal flows like Sand Draw and Little Prospect Creek. This detailed topography, from Crater Sink to the Gumbo Hills, captures the high-desert character of Hot Springs County when individual ranches served as the primary nodes of human activity.