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1952 Map of Montoso Peak

Name: 1952 Topographic Map of Montoso Peak
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1966
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1966

About this map

Caja del Rio Grant and the La Majada Grant dominate this high-desert landscape in the early 1950s, defining a region where land use was managed through expansive federal and communal holdings. A notable scientific presence is marked by the Department of Agriculture Experimental Area northwest of Montoso Peak, suggesting the area's mid-century importance for range or agricultural study.

The terrain is a complex network of volcanic and erosional features, characterized by numerous volcanic peaks such as Colorado Peak, Cerro Micho, and Cerrito Pelado. Water management in this arid environment is evidenced by essential stock tanks and wells, including Tank Nineteen and Eleven Hundred Well. Movement across this plateau relies on a network of jeep trails that thread through Canyon Tetilla and around the base of Ortiz Mountain, reflecting a landscape largely devoid of permanent residential settlements at the time of the survey.