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1973 Map of Knolls

Name: 1973 Topographic Map of Knolls
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1977
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1977

About this map

Knolls serves as the primary landmark in this desolate section of the Great Salt Lake Desert, captured during a 1972 orthophotomosaic survey. The landscape is defined by the stark transition between expansive Mud Flat areas and rolling Sand Dunes, punctuated only by the industrial and military presence that characterized the region in the early 1970s. The Western Pacific railroad line and Highway 80 cut a straight east-west path across the northern terrain, providing a critical transportation link through an otherwise inhospitable environment.

Evidence of local industry is seen at a Gravel Pit near the rail line, while the southern reaches of the map are occupied by the Wendover Air Force Range. This combination of high-speed transit corridors and vast military training grounds illustrates the mid-century utilization of the Utah desert for large-scale logistics and defense operations, far removed from the state's major population centers.