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1951 Map of Norris

Name: 1951 Topographic Map of Norris
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1951
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1951

About this map

Mining legacies and ranching homesteads define this Madison County landscape at the midpoint of the twentieth century. The settlement of Norris serves as a local hub near the Northern Pacific rail line, while the surrounding hills are dotted with former extraction sites like the Waterlode Mine, Helene Mine, and Boaz Mine. These inactive mines and the nearby Red Bluff Cem provide a window into the earlier mineral booms that once drove the region's economy.

The topography is dominated by the Madison River and Red Mountain, with an intricate network of irrigation channels including the Sloan Ditch and Noble Ditch supporting valley operations such as the Noble Ranch and Stephens Ranch. To the south, the terrain transitions into the protected highlands of the Beaverhead National Forest and Gallatin National Forest, where the Bear Trap Creek and Cherry Creek canyons carve through the high country.