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1956 Map of Lake Wichita

Name: 1956 Topographic Map of Lake Wichita
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1979
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1979

About this map

Lake Wichita anchors this landscape, serving as a focal point for the south edge of Wichita Falls and the rural lands of both Wichita Co and Archer Co. The mid-century development of the city is evident through the campus of Midwestern University and the sprawling grounds of the Wichita Falls State Hospital. Beyond the urban core, the terrain is defined by the extraction economy of the Hull-Silk Oil Field, where numerous oil wells and pipelines crisscross the land around Lake Creek.

Rail infrastructure including the Burlington and Denver Railroad and the Wichita Falls and Southern Railroad connects the industrial outskirts to the residential blocks. For the local historian, the map preserves the location of rural schoolhouses like Bowman Sch and Huff Sch, along with established burial grounds such as Rosemont Cemetery and Crestview Memorial Park Cemetery. These landmarks, along with the Secondary Reservoir and various canals, reflect the managed water and energy resources of the 1950s North Texas plains.