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1967 Map of Olive

Name: 1967 Topographic Map of Olive
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1971
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1971

About this map

Olive (Site) sits at the heart of this dryland landscape in Chaves County, indicating a former settlement in the high plains of New Mexico. The area is defined by the broad Olive Basin and the winding course of Hernandez Draw, where the survival of ranching operations depends on a network of water management features. Isolated outposts such as Gainer Ranch and Van Eaton Ranch are connected by Olive Road and several Landing Strips, highlighting the vast distances of the ranching frontier during the mid-20th century.

Landmarks like Twin Buttes provide vertical relief against the horizon, while the distribution of Red Hill Windmill, Little Windmill, and numerous catchment basins including Flat Tank and Bar V Tank reveal the critical infrastructure of the local cattle industry. This 1967 field check documents a period when the rural landscape was characterized by a reliance on traditional windmills and newly installed pipelines to sustain life across the basin.