1954 Map of Iliad

About this map

Iliad and its surrounding ranchlands are documented here during a period of federal investment in the Missouri River Basin. The topography is defined by a series of deep drainage channels, including Sandstone Coulee, Sage Coulee, and Chip Coulee, which cut through the high plains toward the river system. The small settlement of Iliad is anchored by the Iliad Sch, serving a dispersed community of homesteaders whose livelihoods depended on the water sources found at the Artesian Well and various springs. To the south, the dramatic rise of Eightmile Bench overlooks Eightmile Coulee, illustrating the transition from flat grazing lands to the more complex breaks and coulees. This survey provides a precise record of rural infrastructure, from a lone Windmill to the network of unimproved roads that connected these isolated outposts in the mid-1950s.