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1950 Map of Kings Canyon

Name: 1950 Topographic Map of Kings Canyon
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1959
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1959

About this map

The Colorado-Wyoming border territory documented in this 1950 field check centers on the high-altitude resource extraction and agricultural engineering within the Medicine Bow National Forest. The map details a landscape defined by its mining history, notably the Village Belle Mine and the Kings Canyon Mine, along with various Mine Shafts scattered across the slopes of Pinkham Mountain. This era of development saw the construction of significant irrigation infrastructure like the Hardwork Ditch and Allard Ditch, reflecting the necessity of water management in the arid mountain terrain.

Transportation through this rugged pass relied on the Union Pacific rail line, which skirts the western edge of the mountains near Camp Nelson. The convergence of four major protected areas, including the Roosevelt National Forest and Colorado State Forest, underscores the area's transition from active industrial use to state and federal land management. Local drainages like Belle Village Creek and Government Creek provide the primary topographical structure for this frontier region.