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1964 Map of Penwell

Name: 1964 Topographic Map of Penwell
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1981
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1981

About this map

The industrial and ranching landscape of West Texas comes into focus near Penwell, where the intersection of energy production and transportation is clearly defined. A large Refinery and numerous industrial Quarries dominate the northern portion of the sheet, served by the Missouri Pacific railroad line. The map captures a moment when the Permian Basin's oil infrastructure was densely integrated into the terrain, evidenced by a network of pipelines and named water sources like Germany Wells, Nestor Well, and Bradley Barn Well.

South of the Ector and Crane county line, the landscape transitions toward open ranching territory, anchored by the C-Bar Ranch. This 1964 survey, with 1979 photorevisions, illustrates the persistence of the cattle industry alongside the expanding heavy industry of Badger. The detailed surveying of every Gravel Pit and Pit suggests an era of intense road building and structural development across this arid stretch of the state.