Loading map...

1957 Map of Lovejoy Buttes

Name: 1957 Topographic Map of Lovejoy Buttes
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1963
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1963

About this map

Lovejoy Buttes rise sharply from the High Desert floor, anchoring a landscape defined by isolated peaks and expansive alluvial fans in the late 1950s. The area around Wilsona Ranch and the small settlement of Wilsona shows the early development of this arid region, where water access was critical, as evidenced by Lovejoy Springs and numerous scattered wells. The topography is dominated by the broad, braided path of Big Rock Creek Wash, which carries seasonal runoff toward the basin floor.

Transportation through the Antelope Valley is marked by the straight lines of Palmdale Boulevard and the southern curve of the Pearblossom Highway. Evidence of local industry appears at the Quarries near the western buttes, while the eastern edge of the map transitions toward the Black Butte Basin near the distinct landmark of Black Butte. This survey records a moment when the desert was beginning to be gridded by an expanding network of avenues like East Avenue N and East Avenue O.