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1940 Map of Mt. Emma

Name: 1940 Topographic Map of Mt. Emma
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1948
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1948

About this map

The San Gabriel Mountains dominate this 1940s landscape, a rugged terrain shaped by the water management needs of the growing high desert. The north-flowing Little Rock Creek is captured by the Little Rock Palmdale Dam, which diverts water into the Palmdale-Little Rock Ditch along the northern slopes. This infrastructure highlights the era's critical engineering required to sustain settlements just beyond the mountains' edge.

Deep within the Angeles National Forest, the map records early recreation and management sites like the Public Camp and a Guard Sta. To the southwest, the Angeles Forest Highway winds past the Wagonwheel Ranch, providing one of the few vehicular arteries through the steep canyons. This survey, revised just after the war, captures the transition of the region from remote ranching and watershed protection toward more structured public land use and regional transport connectivity.