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1960 Map of Nucla

Name: 1960 Topographic Map of Nucla
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1961
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1961

About this map

The San Miguel River carves a deep path through this 1960 landscape, serving as a vital corridor for the region's uranium and vanadium mining operations. At the river's bend, the company town of Uravan sits surrounded by intensive mining activity, including the Sunbeam Mine and Wright Mines. This era represents a peak in the Colorado Plateau's mineral extraction history, evidenced by the dense cluster of claims such as the Virgin Mine and Black Dinah Mine located near Hieroglyphic Canyon.

Away from the industrial river corridor, the high plateaus like Atkinson Mesa and Shavano Mesa support a different pace of life. The agricultural community of Nucla is anchored by its High Sch and Nucla Cem, while several remote outposts like The Meadows Ranch and Templeton Ranch are scattered across the Uncompahgre National Forest. This survey captures the precarious balance between the booming mid-century mining economy and the established ranching traditions of western Montrose County.