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1918 Map of Noria

Name: 1918 Topographic Map of Noria
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1918
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1918

About this map

Kilbourne Hole and Hunts Hole dominate this arid landscape, revealing a volcanic geography of deep depressions just north of the United States Mexico border. Surveyed in 1917, the map illustrates a sparsely populated desert interior where survival was tied to isolated outposts like the Herringtons Home Ranch and Hall and Primm Ranch. These ranching sites were the primary human features in a territory otherwise defined by the passage of heavy rail transit through the New Mexico desert.

Two major rail lines, the Southern Pacific and the El Paso and Southwestern, bisect the region, supporting small settlements and water stops such as Lanark, Noria, and Vevay. The topography follows the southern edge of the state, terminating at the international Boundary Line with Chihuahua. The map provides a precise view of early twentieth-century infrastructure before modern development, marking the intersection of international diplomacy and frontier industry.