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1952 Map of Papoose Lake

Name: 1952 Topographic Map of Papoose Lake
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1958
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1958

About this map

The Las Vegas Bombing and Gunnery Range dominates this mid-century landscape of the Nevada desert, where military activity and natural basins converge. Mapping efforts by the Army Map Service reveal a territory undergoing intense administrative transformation, marked by the proximity of the Nevada Proving Grounds and the sprawling Desert Game Range. The terrain is defined by its arid dry lakes and prominent ridges, with the Papoose Lake bed sitting central to the Papoose Range.

Evidence of historical extraction remains visible at the Kelly Mine, located near the northeastern sector towards Groom Lake. The map captures the precise jurisdictional lines of the Nye Co and Lincoln Co boundary during an era of expanding federal control. This survey provides a rare look at the basin-and-range topography before subsequent decades of restricted access altered the public's understanding of this high-security region.