1954 Map of Meek SW

About this map

Holt County's rural townships of Rock Falls, Paddock, Shields, and Grattan are documented here following a 1954 survey. This area of Nebraska is defined by a dense network of district schools, reflecting a distributed agrarian population where local education was centered at nodes like School No 90, School No 145, and School No 9. A central Town Hall stands as the primary civic landmark in an otherwise open landscape of section lines and intermittent watercourses. Drainage for the region is provided by Honey Creek and Blackbird Creek, which cut through the terrain among numerous Windmill sites. These landmarks indicate the reliance on groundwater for the homesteads and ranching operations that shaped this part of the Missouri River Basin during the mid-20th century.