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1960 Map of Horse Range Mesa

Name: 1960 Topographic Map of Horse Range Mesa
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1961
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1961

About this map

The Dolores River winds through deep canyons in this 1960 survey of San Miguel County, revealing a landscape defined by postwar mineral extraction. The small settlement of Slick Rock serves as the focal point for an extensive network of mining operations, including the Lower Group Mines, Middle Group Mines, and Upper Group Mines. These sites, along with the Radium Group Mines and Talbert Mines, point to the intensive uranium and vanadium prospecting that characterized this corner of the Colorado Plateau during the mid-20th century.

Infrastructure for the mining workforce and industry is visible in the form of a Trailer Park and Poverty Flat near the river, as well as an Airstrip on the high ground of Horse Range Mesa. Technical markers like the Pipeline and the Slick Rock Bridge underscore the industrialization of this remote terrain, while family-named landmarks like the Charles T Mines provide specific points of interest for genealogical research into the local mining history.