1951 Map of Mason City NW

About this map

The Loup River and its network of tributaries define this mid-century Custer County landscape, captured just as the Department of the Interior was developing the Missouri River Basin. This survey illustrates a rural Nebraska structured by small, localized educational and religious hubs. One can trace the distribution of community anchors like First Budell Ch and a series of district schoolhouses including Hawk Sch, Ash Grove Sch, McIntosh Sch, and Battle Bend Sch. The terrain is marked by numerous Windmill sites, essential for the ranching and farming operations that relied on the waters of Elk Creek, West Box Elder Creek, and East Box Elder Creek. The map also delineates civil boundaries such as Ansley, Berwyn, Algernon, and Elk Creek, showing how these townships organized the land during the early 1950s.