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1962 Map of Mc Alester

Name: 1962 Topographic Map of Mc Alester
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1962
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1962

About this map

McAlester and the high ridges of the Quachita Mountains dominate this 1962 landscape, illustrating a region defined by its timber and coal-mining heritage. The map traces the industrial corridors of the Chicago Rock Island and Pacific RR and the Kansas City Southern RR, which linked the coal-rich settlements of Hartshorne, Wilburton, and Haileyville to broader markets. The topography is characterized by long, parallel ridges such as Winding Stair Mountain and Kiamichi Mountain, much of which is contained within the Quachita National Forest.

Water management and recreation appear as developing features of the era, with the newly formed Wister Reservoir and the northern reaches of Broken Bow Reservoir and Eufaula Lake showing on the margins. Smaller settlements like Panola, Bache, and Fanshawe are documented along the rail lines, providing a detailed record for genealogists researching the families and communities of Southeast Oklahoma and Western Arkansas before the modernization of the late twentieth century.