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1885 Map of La Sal

Name: 1885 Topographic Map of La Sal
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1909
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1909

About this map

Moab and the nascent agricultural community of Plainfield occupy the fertile stretch of Spanish Valley in this late nineteenth-century reconnaissance. The landscape is defined by the dramatic descent of the Green River and the winding Dolores River through deep-cut sandstone, including the formidable Stillwater Canyon and Cataract Canyon. To the east, the La Sal Mountains rise sharply, punctuated by peaks such as Mt Peale and Mt Waas.

Transport is anchored by the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad tracing the northern boundary, while the ranching outpost of La Sal sits at the foot of the mountains near Tukuhnikivatz Creek. This survey, based on the pioneering work of Powell and Hayden, captures the region's topography before the modern infrastructure of the Four Corners area was established, highlighting the isolation of the Orange Cliffs and the wide expanse of the Dome Plateau.