1954 Map of Joplin

About this map

Joplin serves as the industrial and population hub of this mid-century tri-state region, where the borders of Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma meet. The landscape is heavily marked by the extraction and production economies of the era, visible in the numerous oil wells and tanks, refineries, and large-scale industrial sites like the Kansas Army Ammunition Plant and the Eagle-Picher Smelter. The map captures a transitional period in regional water management, showing major impoundments such as Elk City Reservoir and Fall River Reservoir alongside the natural courses of the Neosho River and Verdigris River.