Loading map...

1940 Map of Mt. Cowen

Name: 1940 Topographic Map of Mt. Cowen
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1958
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1958

About this map

Gallatin National Forest dominates this high-altitude landscape surveyed just before the 1940s by J. L. Lewis and F. H. Purdy. The map captures a wilderness defined by dramatic verticality, where the Boulder River cuts through the center of the sheet, fed by a dense network of glacial drainage. High peaks such as Mt Cowen, Black Mtn, and The Pyramid provide the primary landmarks for this backcountry terrain.

Evidence of early forest management and backcountry access is visible through features like the End Lookout and established sites at Beaver Meadows. The survey meticulously details the numerous alpine water bodies that dot the ridges, including Pine Creek Lake, Jewel Lake, and Elbow Lake. This record of the Park County wilderness preserves the pre-war drainage and trail patterns, documenting the natural geography before later modern developments or reclassifications altered the nomenclature of these high basins.