1953 Map of Gunsight Butte

About this map

The Crossing of the Fathers marks a significant historical point along the Colorado River in this mid-century survey of the Utah-Arizona borderlands. Before the landscape was transformed by the filling of Lake Powell, the river flowed freely through Glen Canyon, flanked by the Rainbow Plateau and the Navajo Indian Reservation. The map captures a complex drainage system where Last Chance Creek, Kane Wash, and Navajo Padre Canyon converge toward the river's path. High ground is dominated by the massive Smoky Mountain and prominent landmarks like Gunsight Butte and Castle Rock. This survey provides a rare look at the original riverbed and its surrounding canyons as they appeared just years before the construction of the Glen Canyon Dam, documenting a geography that is now largely submerged.