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1962 Map of Melena

Name: 1962 Topographic Map of Melena
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1965
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1965

About this map

The Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge dominates this section of Chaves County, protecting a vital riparian corridor where the desert floor meets the waters of the Pecos River. Surveyed in the early 1960s, the landscape is defined by the contrast between the arid Dunnahoo Hills and a complex network of seasonal and permanent water bodies, including Big Lake, Skull Lake, and the curiously named Ink Pots.

Human activity is concentrated along the industrial and transportation corridor of the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe railroad, which runs parallel to the Clovis Highway. The small settlement at Melena serves as a waypoint along these routes, while numerous resource extraction sites like the Gravel Pit and various Sandpits indicate the local economy's reliance on the surrounding terrain. To the north, the broad expanse of Garcia Flat is drained by the Arroyo del Macho, illustrating the complex hydrology of this New Mexico basin.